


After the Darkness

by Ria84



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, Star Wars: The Last Jedi - Fandom
Genre: Accidental Voyeurism, Angst with a Happy Ending, Babes of Ren, Devoted Reylo, Eventual Kylo Ren/Rey, Explicit Sexual Content, F/F, F/M, Family Drama, Finn knitts, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Gratuitous Smut, Guardians of the Whills, I take reader queues super seriously, I'm not very good at doing tags, Just a dash of angst, Knights with Vices, Kylo Ren Needs a Hug, Kylo Ren Redemption, Kylo Ren and Rey Are Not Related, Loss of Virginity, Mutual Masturbation, Oral Sex, Original Character(s), Plotty McPlot with some Smutty Smut, Porgs love Kylo, Relationship(s), Rey cooks, Rey loves wine Kylo Ren loves wine, Rey snowboards!, Reylo - Freeform, Reylo sex eventually, Sexual Tension, Shameless Smut, Size Difference, Smut, Snow, Some Humor, Studs of Ren, The Knights of Ren ship it, Virginity, Vulptices, explicit violence, knights just wanna have fun, porgs, see what i did there..
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-15
Updated: 2019-03-24
Packaged: 2019-03-31 21:56:06
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 40
Words: 107,353
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13984116
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ria84/pseuds/Ria84
Summary: 18 months after the battle on Crait. Rey and Kylo Ren are reunited via the Force bond, taking them into a whirlwind of events that will shape both their lives and the ultimate fate of the Resistance, the First Order and the Galaxy by extension.The Knights of Ren are prominently featured throughout this fic and they are full of surprises!





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys! So I'm totally new at this! I've been reading some amazing works on here and I've been so inspired I thought I could maybe give it a shot and write my own story! I have a good idea of what I would like to do with this story but I'm starting to realize that articulating thoughts on paper is not for the feint of heart! Please send me your feedback I really appreciate any type of advice and input!

First comes the day  
Then comes the night.  
After the darkness  
Shines through the light.  
The difference, they say,  
Is only made right  
By the resolving of gray  
Through refined Jedi sight.  
-Journal of the Whills 7:477

“Ok…so what does that mean for me?” she wondered out loud after reading over the same passage for the hundredth times since they got here.

 

Rey was losing patience, a fact frustrating in itself as it went against the teachings of the Jedi as far as she could tell from the majority of the books she’s stolen from Master Luke.

 

  _Page turners_.

 

She thought sarcastically.

 

“No wonder Luke was such a crotchety old man, these sacred texts are the beyond bullshit”. She instantly felt guilt at her musings and convinced herself that she may be the worst Jedi in the history of the Jedi -  an identification she was not nearly comfortable with appropriating but it had been rather forcefully thrust upon her by the remainder of the rebels.

 

 _The rebels…well that’s what we all are_ ; _rebels fighting an untamed power_.

 

Eighteen galactic months after the resistance was decimated on Crait, the First Order had effectively no opponents to bring its tyranny and destruction to heel. There were only twenty resistance fighters that Rey and Chewie were able to rescue with the Millenium Falcon, rock lifting and Master Luke’s trickery.

 

Twenty. A speck of dust in the shadow of the First Order….

 

Rey was lounging (as much as one can lounge on a military grade cot) in her room on the old Rebel base on Hoth and indulging in melancholic reverie.

 

It was not something she does very often as she was generally busy with her daily duties as one of three mechanics remaining in the Resistance. Rey, Chewie and Rose engaged in tedious, long days of fixing the damage time has done to the Falcon as well as the transports they had found on the old rebel base. After a stretch of ten of these days, the three had taken a well-deserved day off.

 

Chewie was spending it with his porgs; oddly enough the little critters have taken well to the snow and ice and seemed to be thriving in the inhospitable environment of Hoth. She on the other hand, hated snow almost more than she hated sand. Why couldn't she ever live on a planet with a docile climate?

 

Rose and Finn were in love and their love was a breath of fresh air to all the Crait survivors. A spark of hope that even in the darkest hour, under the most dire of circumstances and against impossible odds, two souls found each other, comforted each other and became each other’s world. They were an inspiration of selflessness and redemption… _and so fucking annoying!_

 

Rey had just about had it with their public nuzzling and cooing and …”God Dam it!” They were at it again! Of course Rose was taking their self-appointed time off to lock herself in Finn’s room. And either they were doing some major home improvements or they were working on repopulating the Resistance. For the third time since last night.

 

She was jealous. Not because of any stray feelings for Finn as she thought when they were sitting on the Falcon watching him take care of Rose and hovering over her like a mama Porg. She understood, after some mediation, that her feelings for Finn were purely platonic, that he was her first friend, her _best_ friend and the two were never meant to be anymore than that.

 

But still, she was jealous! But of what? That’s a tendril she never tugged at, fearing of what she may stir inside her.

 

But that morning, while she sat in her nest of blankets and porgs _(ugh!)_ and freeze her ass off while involuntarily listening to her neighbors going at it like rabbits in heat ( _ugh! Fucking ugh!)_ she explored her less accessible feelings.

 

She wanted what they have.

 

She thought, oh she had _known_ that HE wanted the same thing. The vision was clear about that.

 

HE. Can’t say his name…either of the names really...without eliciting a really violent reaction from her, usually at the detriment of one of her pillows, or a piece of furniture. Funny enough that was another thing they now had in common – sudden and uncontrollable temper tantrums! Super fun and not at all off-putting to the people around her.

 

Looking at the dented table under the window of the room, it occurred to her that she may have been a better Jedi before she went to Ach-To. She’s never known jealousy and rage. All inspired by the same man. HIM.

 

_I hate him._

 

She didn't really though. She was disappointed in him. She thought she understood him and when she fled, after leaving him on the floor of the Supremacy she’d made a promise to herself that she would wait.

 

Wait for him to make better decisions that would hopefully bring him to the future that the Force had showed her on Ach-To. She hadn’t taken his life when she could have, twice over, because she understood that his life somehow will intertwine with hers in the end, that is the will of the Force.

 

And then she had heard and seen what he had done on Crait.

 

“Kylo Fucking Ren” she spat out with a feral growl.

  
“You have the filthiest mouth scavenger”

  
Of course HE was here, somehow summoned by her hate. She should be upset by his instant presence but all she feels is annoyance…and if she was honest with herself…a little relieved. She hasn’t seen him through their bond in about six months and was starting to wonder if she would ever see him again.

  
“What are you doing here?” she asked in a tone dripping with lazy irritation. He looked like he was just enjoying a cup of kaf reading a book maybe? Definitely in his bed clothes. His raven hair was wild with wet curls and she could clearly make out the outline of his chest and stomach muscles through his black t-shirt and it was so very distracting….

  
“Have you heard a word I just say scavenger?”

  
“No I didn’t! Because I am pretending you’re not here to disrupt my morning of peace and quiet in the warmth and comfort of my private space…” her last words trailed off as the wall next to her bed began shaking with the ill-timed amorous efforts of her neighbors.

  
“Yah, I can see as much” he smirked. _He smirks now!?_

  
“Is there something you actually wanted Kylo?” she venomously enunciated his name.

  
“Look here girl, I didn’t show up here to be yelled at before I’ve even finished my first cup of kaf of the day” his amusement completely wiped off his face. “You know just as much as I do, that these meetings are the will of the Force, not ours, so why don’t we dispense with the introductory un-pleasantries and get to the purpose of this visit and then I can get back to my day. Every time the bond has been activated it has been with a purpose and I want to get it flushed out so we can end this quickly”.

  
“Well what the fuck was the Force’s purpose last time?” she asked indignant, flinching at the memory.

  
Kylo Ren rolled his eyes and crossed his arms in front of his chest, preparing to speak as the bond suddenly disappears.

  
“Ass” she spat out to no one. Unbidden, the memory of their last, tragic meeting began playing in her mind, like a holocrhon, as the bile built up inside her.

 

***

 

It felt like the worst day of Rey’s life. Maybe not her entire life, but certainly up there with the day Ben betrayed her and took up the post of Supreme Leader of the First Order.

 

About a year after Crait, Leia had gotten sick with a bout of pneumonia. Although a serious enough affliction, it was easily treatable and they were expecting her to make a full recovery after a few weeks of rest and medication.

  
When C3PO summoned them frantic to the General’s quarters early in the morning a week later they were stunned! Leia had passed during the night. She had never given up on anything, no matter how little hope was left. She wouldn’t have just given up though, she was strong with the Force and she would have heard the call announcing it was her time to return to the Force. She would've warned them, she would've said her goodbyes.

 

Their shining beacon of hope and survival was gone.

 

Everyone at the base was devastated. The Crait survivors were mostly resistance pilots, all young enough to have known Leia most of their lives and all regarded her as a mother not just a leader. Her passing had been a hard pill to swallow.

  
Rey remembered fumbling through the day as an almost out of body experience. She was in utter denial. She’s never had a mother and Leia had filled that void in her heart for the last year. Her optimism was infectious and her hope in the light was inspiring.

 

But for Rey there was another aspect of Leia that she treasured – she was HIS mother. He had her beautiful eyes and her sweetness; a sweetness that she found in Ben Solo that was buried inside Kylo Ren these days. Being able to see Leia every day and look into those eyes abated Rey’s loneliness somehow. And now Leia was gone, and Rey was truly never going to see those eyes again.

 

She heard nothing. Not nothing but the void in the Force when the bond to Ben opened.

 

Quickly, her initial shock was overcome by a shock of a different nature.

 

Ben was shirtless in his chambers, laying face up on his bed panting, sweating, eyes squeezed closed and teeth clenched like he was in agony. Did he sense it through the bond? Before she was able to even take a breath, the image in front of her shifted and she was getting the true picture of what was going on. A beautiful brunette woman about the same age as Ben was kneeling on the floor in front of him with her mouth wrapped around his cock. She was stroking him and licking him and it seemed like he was being pushed to the edge of his orgasm by her when Rey gasped and his eyes flew open. He looked directly in her eyes and seemed ready to thrash her through the wall.

  
But after what seemed to be hours and was really a fraction of a second, he placed one arm casually under his head, the other he ran through the girl’s lush dark locks and without breaking eye contact with Rey, he encouraged his companion to suck harder and eventually climaxed with a loud gasp.

 

“WHY” Rey screamed in her room, violently shaking her head to make the memories of that day disappear. “What is the lesson there? Why would the Force make me see that? To make me aware that I have some unresolved feelings for him? Yes I am fully in tuned with my feelings for Kylo Ren and so is my furniture”

  
She was jealous of that girl though. That stranger made her feel inadequate. She had no experience with men that she could speak to and that was professional level performance what she had witnessed. She was aware of the needs of men; she became keenly aware of Unkar Plutt’s lingering stares and had gotten some of the same vibes from other scavengers and traders at Niima outpost but had foolishly never imagined that Ben would have the same kind of desires. Not Ben; Kylo Ren.

 

She felt stupid that day because she realized how naïve she was; she had thought of her and Ben Solo as soul mates when she was on Ach-To and when he reached out his hand to touch hers and she saw his future she could not imagine anything more intimate. But Kylo Ren wass a man who is maybe seven or eight years older than she; he was the most powerful man in the Galaxy these days and he has needs that need to be fulfilled by a worthy woman. The girl Rey saw was beautiful, groomed and delicate and she clearly knew exactly what to do and how to do it.

 

There was a grain of hope tucked away deep inside Rey that Kylo hadn't meant what he had said to her on the Supremacy, that he was carried away by the fight and the intense emotions they were feeling. She hoped that deep inside he thought the two of them had something special. She carried this with her for the first year after the battle on Crait, waiting and still convinced that he would come back to her.

 

Until she saw that and understood that she was the only one hanging on to anything from Ach-To, that what she cherished as precious gems of sentiment were exactly like her treasures from Jakku…discarded and unwanted rubbish. Yes, that was the lesson the Force had for her, to let the past die (he would smirk at that had he been able to read her thoughts). She was a good student if nothing else.

 

That was the last day she thought about him being redeemable in any way.

 

“Well that was fun and relaxing” she scoffed as she turned over in her bed to watch at the snow blanketing everything outside past her window.

 

“Something new and interesting then, fucking SNOW”.

 

She was grumpy and unsettled and decided to spend her entire day off hiding, alone in her bed and hopefully without any other interruptions from Finn and Rose or HIM.

 

As the day light slowly bled into the long darkness of night, she was still looking out the window admiring the snowflakes. She was hypnotized by their frantic dance and her mind became clear, free of any burdens, all thoughts having dissipated while she concentrated on the movement and shape of each spec of snow.

  
"The snow is much more beautiful here than on Starkiller Base"

  
"Fuck" was all she mustered up to say  hearing Kylo's voice and shut the bond that had opened against her will.

 

He wasn't in the room any more as her mind returned to it's own blizzard of thoughts and complicated, inconvenient feelings.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A catch up with the First Order and then Kylo Ren has a minute.

Commander Peavy felt irritated.

 

Somehow that had become the accepted the status quo of his mood. Having served the First Order for over three decades under various leadership he had seen the Order rise from the ashes of the Empire to the ultimate unchallenged super power it was today.  One thing had remained constant throughout his service – the leadership, while under diverse maniacs and sycophants, had always been short sighted and inevitably toppled.

 

After the attack on the Supremacy, the commander found himself on a very crowded ship; the Finalizer was now the home of the entire First Order leadership while the Supermacy was being fixed (however long that would take).  

 

Edrison Peavy was the Captain of the Finalizer during the Resistance attack for nearly a year and a half. A man in his late fifties, he had seen the fall of the empire, the rise and fall of the New Republic and now the untamed growth of the First Order under Snoke after he breathed new life in the embers of the fallen Empire.  

 

Peavy was a celebrated military leader and feelt like a hand maiden to two spoiled privileged little princelings. Both Hux and Ren came from influential powerful families and have been brought up to be entitled and self-centered. This was a feature of their generation it seemed, as all the officers under his direct command have the same type of personality flaws. He often mused on the generational differences between he and his leaders and it drained him to think too much about it.

 

General Hux and Supreme Leader Kylo Ren did not see eye to eye and while most of their conflict was not resolved with violence - Ren had Forced choked Hux a good two dozen times since the change in leadership - their constant tension and contradicting instructions created an uncomfortable work environment for him and his men.

 

Peavy cut his teeth under the command of Brendol Hux, who above else esteemed order and discipline, the core values of all military leaders. His son Armitage did not; he saw their values as a means to an end, and that end was power. Peavy was painfully aware that if given the opportunity to become Supreme Leader, Armitage Hux would make it his business to destroy all enemies with the same ferociousness and lack of regard for life as he demonstrated while dealing with the Hosnian System and the New Republic.

 

Where would it end though, Hux is a mad dog for power and authority. An obvious fact and likely the reason Kylo Ren insists on shutting Hux down and embarrassing him publicly.

 

While this was somewhat amusing, Peavy had no love for Supreme Leader Ren either. Kylo Ren was a Force fanatic, so strong with its power but valued it beyond all else.

 

As Supreme Leader of the Firs Order his goal is to “bring Oder to the Galaxy”. Whatever that means. His experience has taught him that fear, hate and destruction only breed enemies in the long term. Yes they crushed the Resistance but there will be another uprising in its place. The First Order will only be able to maintain unchecked for a short time, until another faction would rise against it.

 

Or Hux blows up the entire Galaxy and they will rule supreme over a pile of ashes.

 

Kylo Ren rose to power immediately after Snoke was murdered by the Jedi. What happened in the throne room and how this girl had defeated Ren and Snoke was a mystery. Peavy has his suspicions of course but he knows enough about the new Supreme Leader’s mind probing abilities to understand that keeping one’s traitorous thoughts at the forefront of their mind is dangerous.

 

The immediately pressing issue the Order had dealt with after the demise of Snoke had been generating funds for repairing the Supremacy. There are two ways of obtaining funds: either generating them with one’s own efforts or borrowing.

 

The First Order of course has decided to simply appropriate resources from systems it has taken over by forces. Which in turn had meant an increased requirement for military personnel, causing dissent and imminent backlash in the near future. Why Ren and Hux could not see the writing on the wall and why they are not taking any measures to prevent it or prepare for it, was beyond him.

 

Peavy was not a fan of staffing the Order with slave soldiers. Even with Captain Phasma’s conditioning process, they were still at their core people who were taken from their families and brought into forced military service for their enemy. Their loyalty was as strong as their fear for Hux and Kylo Ren but that will only go so far if they decide to rebel against their masters.

 

Hux was spending credits on research and development towards building a new mass destruction. Kylo Ren didn't trust Hux and was likely aware of everything Hux was trying to do even as classified projects but he may just not care to stop him at this point. The commander was fairly certain that at some point Ren would snuff out Hux, but for now he kept the ginger around to do his day to day bidding.

 

Back to the tasks of the day, Commander Peavy supervised the transfer gold from Endor. An almost ridiculous “victory” - Endor was populated by Ewoks who can hardly defend themselves against any sizeable attack.

It was populated by Ewoks. Until Hux decided their lives were of no value and signed a directive to have them all destroyed.

 

_Senseless._

….

 

Kylo Ren sat in his quarters trying to meditate before he could sleep, a luxury not afforded to him in the last year and a half. The destruction of Endor’s Ewok population manifested as a rather large disturbance in the Force and left him reeling with a migraine all day.

 

_Why is Hux such a psychotic despot wannabee?_

 

What was the point of this whole mission, they could’ve taken the gold with virtually no fight and established a small First Order post on Endor to oversee the security of the planet. Instead, Hux deployed a third of their forces to the planet, including two star destroyers and AT-ATs, AT-AM6s and the battering ram cannon. Unnecessary and expensive.

 

Of course though, when he had chastised him, Hux had so gently reminded him of his chase of the Resistance to Crait. Fair point, although it was another item on Kylo's long list of reasons why he will rejoice when he crushed Hux into a million little pieces with his bare hands one day.

 

He should’ve known this day would be long and trying for him since it started off so stellar with the bond opening up and him getting yelled at by HER.

 

The bond had thankfully stayed closed for the past six months and he was finally back to having a routine as the Supreme Leader of the First Order without constantly being interrupted by her and her constant inventory of all his sins.

 

He made peace with his decisions; he did not regret having killed Snoke to save her. He is the only one who knows this, even Rey believed he did it to get power over the First Order.

 

That was not a conscious decision he made however. It was either him or Hux who would’ve become the next Supreme Leader and there was no fucking way that he would allow that rabid dog get any more power than he already had.

 

To say he was conflicted that day in Snoke’s throne room was putting it mildly. He had so many strong  emotions that he was not able to articulate and so he was unable to control them.

 

Snoke was right of course, he was torn up about killing Han Solo. As his light faded from the Force, Kylo knew he had failed Snoke’s test; he was not stronger or solid with the Dark, he was full of regret and pain at the words he would never be able to say to his father. The scavenger left him in the snow bleeding and dying, his body’s injury mirroring his soul.

 

Dying would have been easy but the easy path was not for him. Hux found him and he was patched up by medical droids on the Supremacy and while his body healed, his soul was torn in pieces.

 

The Force Bond opened up around the same time and that had nearly been his ruin. He already felt compassion for her, as Snoke sensed, from the very beginning. Drawn to her and her power like a moth to a flame. He wanted to teach her and nurture her power to become a powerful Force User. Of course there was more to it; he was so attracted to her physically since he met her.

 

_She’s beautiful._

 

But it was not just her flawless face, long legs and tight little body he liked; she also projected and innocence and goodness in her light that his Darkness craved. Once he’d sensed it, he could not let himself move on from wanting it.

 

Wanting her.

 

He had convinced Snoke of her abilities and was certain that if he completed his test and brought her to him, Snoke would let him keep the girl as his apprentice. When Snoke decided to kill her with the cruelest stroke and mercilessly tortured her in front of him, Kylo decided. When their fingers touched and he saw inside her mind, a part of him became hers and when she died, there would be nothing to put him back together.

 

His mother had told him as a small boy that he felt everything intensely and raw and he knew watching her be killed would burn him from the inside out.

 

There was no other decision for him; he was never going to hurt her and he killed Snoke without hesitation.

 

The power that came from saving her and at the same time freeing himself from his master was intoxicating. It fueled him during the battle with the Pretorian Guard and it spilled over when he asked her to join him. His vision was clear of what he wanted to next and he needed her to complete him and fuel him with her Force as she just did.

 

She was a traitor.

 

She tried to kill him with his Grandfather’s weapon… _again._ And she left him, didn’t consider his proposal for a second, didn’t accept his hand and stomped on his heart on her way back to the Resistance.

 

Days after his failure on Crait, once he had time to catalog his feelings and lick his wounds, he understood that her power over him is now immense. Her leaving had left him in shambles left his emotions completely exposed to everyone, his training in control completely forgotten.

 

He knew it was her rejection that sent him down to Crait to crush everything she still held dear to make her hurt as much as he did. Yes, he understood that he opened himself to her in a way that he never had to anyone, not even forced by Snoke. He had allowed her in his mind and his heart and offered her everything. And she ran away like a coward, like he was nothing, like all he offered was worthless to her. He understood, after long hours of meditation and introspection - the only skill worth anything from training under the Jedi and under Snoke - that she had _too much_ power over him.

 

He understood, finally, why compassion and attachments were forbidden by both sides and how these weaknesses manifest themselves.

 

What he could bot understand was how to make it stop. He promised Luke that he would destroy her, his chosen one that the Jedi preferred over his own flesh and blood. He wants to destroy her. He also knew he couldn't hut her and that was infuriating.

 

He could hunt her down and take her prisoner again. Why the fuck would he want to do that though? She made him miserable with her presence over the Force Bond, why would he want her near him? No that would be a mistake.

 

“Rey” he sighed out her name with a huff.

 

As soon as he said it, as soon as her name tumbled out of his mouth she appeared. She sat in her bed still, like she had been earlier in the morning, gazing out her tiny window.

 

Either Kylo was getting stronger or the bond grew getting stronger because he could now see all her immediate surroundings and the falling snow.

 

He watched it for a few seconds, allowing himself to be as mesmerized as she seems to be by the fluffy quiet snow.

 

_The snow is so much more beautiful here than on Starkiller Base._

 

“Fuck” is what he got in reply, leaving him disturbed that she’s heard his thoughts.

 

And then she'd shut him out.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for coming back! There will be more dialog after these initial chapters and some OCs coming up soon :)


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kylo and Rey have a friendly chat and that leaves Rey with some decisions she needs to make.

His presence was intense in such a small space. Even though he wasn't truly in her room, Rey felt overwhelmed, like he was taking up all the available space. And in truth he did take up a lot of room, huge in every sense of the word, no doubt due to his intense training as a Jedi and then as Snoke’s apprentice.

 

Rey's gotten a good look at what he’s got under that tunic and she would be an utter liar if she claimed she would be opposed to seeing it again, even touch with her fingers, her lips…

 

“Ahem…you know how you could read my thoughts just now…”he smirked. _Again, smirking? This is a new thing. And wow where did those thoughts even come from?_

 

“I guess your Master never bothered to teach you how to protect yourself” he continued. “Maybe that should’ve been one of his first lessons to you. Would’ve saved himself from having to explain that smashed up hut for one.”

 

“I was in your head just as much as you were in mine _Kylo_. But yah, he maybe should’ve spent more time teaching me how to block you out than milking the wildlife.”

 

“Um ok well I don’t know about that last bit and feel free to never mention that again, but I can teach you some blocking techniques if you wanted” he spoke softly as he sat down, clearly not realizing he’s sitting on her bed. Or maybe he knew and was trying to prove a point about how learning to block him would make this so much less uncomfortable for her.

 

Rey was confused. “Why would you offer to teach me anything? What do you have to gain out of it? I know you hate me and everything I stand for and all my friends.”

 

“I don’t hate you girl”

 

“Girl. Why don’t you say my name _Kylo”_

 

“Because you don’t say mine”. He replied with just the slightest twinge of his bottom lip, which he probably hoped she didn’t notice.

 

She did. But it didn't matter because she was still harboring so much anger towards him for Crait and everything thereafter.

 

“But you are Kylo Ren, the Supreme Leader of the First Order. The most powerful and feared man in the Galaxy. You have everything you wanted.”

 

She was honest, and maybe a bit childish too. Rey felt that she may have dealt him a low blow and continued without waiting for a reply. “Seriously though, you’re back for the second time in a day, so I’m thinking you must want something specific. If we’re just waiting for this bond thing to break, then do it quietly and maybe get off my bed”. _Definitely being childish._ Why was he always bringing out the worst in her?

 

He didn’t move at all. It occurred to Rey that maybe exposing small things that make her uneasy about him to him should be something to avoid in the future. He didn't need any more ammunition.

 

“I want this bond to break permanently” Kylo replied without breaking eye contact. “That is something I know we agree on. It’s distracting and unpredictable which makes it dangerous. But we both created it and we both need to be active participants in its destruction.”

 

“Okay” Rey agreed. “How do we do that?”

 

“Well that is something I don’t know” he admitted, looking back out the window at the falling snow. “But I saw the Jedi Texts you stole from Luke and I think there could be something in there to give us some answers. So I would like to borrow them”.

 

“Borrow them?” she used the most sarcastic tone she could muster. “So you’d just pop in, take _my_ books, the only thing I have left to teach me anything about myself, and then just leave and go back to your ship?”

 

“No” his voice was almost a whisper as he paced towards her window and took in the scenery. Rey wondered for a moment how long it had been for him since he's seen snow. Starkiller maybe? “You come to me”

 

“Yah, that’s not happening dude”

 

“Dude!?” he replied with mirth “you’re spending too much time with resistance pilots, it’s rubbing off on you”

 

“Thanks!”

 

“It was not meant as a compliment girl”

 

“Well I took it as one. Seriously, that’s a really ridiculous idea you just spewed out. I came to you once, without reservations and willing to help you and look how that worked. I mean…it worked out quite nicely for you” she can practically taste venom on her lips.

 

His fists clenched at his sides but he was still in control of his temper. He hadn’t lashed out at her just yet. His eyes were intense however, dark and burning into hers.

 

“You’re still lying to yourself. You didn’t come to help me. You came to turn Ben Solo to the light so he could save your Resistance”

 

That made her flinch. It wasn’t entirely untrue ,but the way he had twisted it made her sound like a selfish, conspiring cunt.

 

No, those were his thoughts and she wouldn’t let him manipulate her feelings like that. It didn’t matter what the motivations were anyways.

 

“It does matter” he spoke.

 

“Please get out of my head, I’m entitled to my privacy”

 

“I am not in your head girl. You are project all your thoughts and your emotions through the bond. I only have enough room in my own head for me and this is getting worse and worse. So we need to come up with a plan to make this stop before it becomes too distracting and dangerous”

 

_Projecting…that’s new! He’s not projecting anything to me though, I’m at a complete disadvantage here._

 

“Yah, I know how to shield my mind as I’ve had a significant amount of training in the ways of the force. And I could teach you. Tell me where you are and I will come to you. I will help you fix your saber and in turn you will help me go through the Jedi texts and work with me to break this bond. I can’t completely dedicate myself to my duties if this continues to manifest itself”.

 

“Let me think about it” she was suddenly weary, tired of the conversation. “I don’t want to tell you where we are, that’s out of the question. But you’re right. This is past inconvenient. It’s dangerous.” She almost didn't  want him to leave and that thought frightened her“I don’t have an answer for you right now, this has been a lot of information to process and I need to come up with something that makes sense and it doesn’t put me or my friends in danger.”

 

“You have nothing to fear from me girl, I have never hurt you on purpose. Can you say the same”? he spat but had no time to enjoy his petty small victory when flashes of _that night_ suddenly flood their bond.

 

His expressions go from shock, to anger and then…sadness? And back to Kylo Ren, ignoring the images she'd just sent screaming towards his mind.

 

“Next time the bond opens, you need to have a semblance of a plan or I am coming to get you. You don’t honestly believe that with minimum effort I wouldn’t be able to find you?”

 

No she doesn’t. Rey was surprised that he hasn’t come to destroy what’s left of them already, especially now that his mother is no longer alive.

 

“You are irrelevant and the First Order is not going to waste it’s resources hunting down a pack of beat dogs”

 

And then he was gone. But the shape of him and his presence had left an unmistakable void.

 

 _Ouch. That stung, Irrelevant. Nobody from Nowhere. What else is new?_ She should've  be used to hearing these words and she should be beyond being insulted but coming from him, the words hurt.

 

_Well, no sense on dwelling on that now, that’s what the 15 hour night is for! Ugh_

 

“Nerfherder” Leia’s favorite expression, spoken out loud, brought a smile to her lips.

….

 

She needed to talk to Finn and Poe about this development. She had been honest with them from the beginning.

 

Finn wass her best friend, her first friend and the only person who has ever come back for her. She met Poe after Starkiller Base and instantly bonded with him. She remembered liking his face. And really though, who wouldn’t?

 

His dark eyes rimmed by impossibly long black lashes always seemed to sparkle with a hint of mischief you wouldn’t suspect to find in a 38 year old Commander and now General of the Resistance. He did not like to be called General, mostly because everyone on the Hoth base were friends, equal survivors of Crait and ranks just seemed unnecessary. Also, because there were twenty of them on the base and everyone has been following Poe since Crait as was, the use of the formal rank seemed redundant.

 

During their long trip from Crait to Hoth she had told Finn, Leia and Poe all the details of her time between D’Qar and Crait. Most of the details anyways. She told them about her force bond with Ben, about the meeting and the battle in the throne room.

 

They knew Ben saved her and killed Snoke. What they don’t know is why she left him alive after he betrayed her with his offer. She hasn’t told anyone about him calling her nothing however; that was a humiliation she could not stand to live through again.

 

She didn’t kill him because she couldn’t.

 

The Force would not forgive that; she felt it in her heart and for whatever reason she knew this was the truth and she made the right choice. Her friends knew that she escaped when the cruiser hit the Supremacy at light speed and that seemed to be good enough for them.

 

They were ecstatic when she told them a few months back that the bond was gone and now she has to let them know she was wrong.

 

She knocked on the door to Poe’s room and he invited her in with a smile.

 

 _Maker he’s handsome, look at that smile._ She is really glad for once that Poe is not Force Sensitive. She also made a mental note to get a fucking grip on these bouts of lust she’s been experiencing lately; whatever was going on with her hormones needed to stop before she really got into some trouble…

 

“Hey kiddo, what’s up?” he invited her in, patting the chair in front of him.

 

“Hey Poe. There’s been a development in my force bond with Kylo Ren. It’s back and it’s worse than ever”.

 

She went on to retell the story and emphasize how Kylo had the ability to see their surroundings as far as seeing out the window and the thought projection.

 

“I’m endangering out position. If he hasn’t found us yet it’s because he doesn’t want to.”

 

“I know what you’re going to say Rey but please reconsider; we are so few left if you leave us it would leave a big hole in the heart of this rabble”.

 

Rey gazed nervously at her hands and fidgeted as she continued “He wants us to meet so we can study the Jedi texts and break the bond for good”

 

“No. Fucking. Way”  Finn growled from the doorway. “Are you crazy? He’s a psychopath and he’s been off his leash for a good year and a half. He’s killed his father and he almost killed his own mother. You can’t see him”

 

“Rey, I don’t have the Force but I’m getting the distinct feeling you’ve made up your mind”. Poe sighed “General Calrissian gets here in a few days. He is helping us relocate to...”

 

“Don’t say anything else Poe” Rey interrupted almost frantic. "It’s best that I don’t know any strategic plans until I can control my thought projection. The last thing we want is Kylo Ren knowing we still have hope”.

 

“Rey, please think about what you’re going to do. Kylo Ren is the Supreme Leader of the First Order. He is dangerous and he will stop at nothing to get what he wants” Poe added with concern.

 

“He wants you Rey!” Finn shouted with tears glistening in his eyes. “He wants your power. I saw him take you from Takodana with my own eyes, you cannot possibly trust him!”

 

“This bond needs to die – it’s the only thing he wants and it’s what I want also” _He said so himself…I’m irrelevant._

 

The last part of her thought remained private, as did the small prick of pain at playing those words in her mind again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for sticking with me and reading to this point! I appreciate all the feedback!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kylo comes up with a plan

Kylo was dripping with sweat and his body was exhausted after his training session. Yet his mind was as restless as it was before he started. Not that his mind was ever at peace, but he was feeling particularly out of sorts after his visit with the scavenger.

 

_Yes, the day that will not fucking end._

 

He grumbled internally as he was taking off his sweat drenched clothes and toweled off.

 

He could not stop thinking about their conversation. It went better than expected.

 

She only insulted him a hand full of times, agreed to think about working with him on dissolving the bond and she projected clearly about her thoughts on the matter of his body. He hadn’t mentioned to her that lust is also something that she had been projected through the bond and he was confident that had he attempted it, she would've allowed him to kiss her. Maybe.

 

But that’s if he wanted to kiss her, which he did not. She already had too much power over him, the last thing he needed to do was to give in to such a stupid instinct.

 

 _Sentiment is a weakness._  Yes, his former master was correct in that.

 

So why did he feel so shitty about what she showed him? He knew she was shocked seeing him mid-blow job, and it was kind of an asshole move instead of stopping to lay back and let Pimena’s girl finish him while Rey watched. And he was satisfied at the time, like he had inflicted the smallest amount of vengeance on her while he was getting off.

 

But seeing it through her thoughts tonight made him feel conflicted about what he had done. Why had that made her sad? He was trying to piss her off, make her uncomfortable and get a rise out of her in general. He had no inkling that this would make her feel like that. The girl hates him, and he hates her. Or he did…but now she’s been downgraded to a major pain in his ass.

 

She might be, could be the worst Jedi he’d ever seen. She had no means to protecting herself as her saber – _his saber_ – was split in two and Luke taught her nothing about protecting her thoughts. She had an extensive inventory of language that would make a smuggler blush, a trigger temper and cannot seem to keep it in her pants for one second. _Ok, that’s a bit of a stretch._ But still very un-Jedi.

 

She was a gorgeous girl in her early twenties there is no way she hasn’t been involved in that particular scenario a few times. Kylo knew celibacy as one of the primary rules governing the Jedi but she was already about twenty when she went to Skywalker.

 

 _That’s probably it…sexual frustration makes her sad_. _But she bunks with a bunch of Resistance flyboys…_

 

_Hopefully she’s not fucking Dameron or the First Order Traitor. Or anyone._

 

The First Order's rules pertaining to sex were so much more civilized than the Jedi’s. Like the Jedi, the Order was clear about attachment, sentiment and compassion being a weakness and so relationships were forbidden. But sex was natural and a healthy release and forcing twenty-somethings and thirty-somethings into celibacy results with a buildup of sexual tension and distraction.

 

Snoke’ solution to that was Pimena. A shrewd twi’lek business woman, she had come to this realize the demand for this market long before any of the First Order leadership had and she had unofficially become the sole flesh peddler for the entire Order. Troopers needed to gain focus through that type of release too, and so did the officers. As did Kylo Ren. Once a week, like clockwork, one of her expensive girls would come to service him. Never the same one, he did not care to learn their names or remember their faces and he erases their memory as soon as they’re out the door. And never ones that have seen Hux. Kylo Ren does not get that ginger cunt’s sloppy seconds.

 

He was annoyed at his train of thought and purposely shifted his attentions to the part of the conversation where she agreed to think about meeting him. If they could get rid of the bond, if he couldn’t feel her tendrils around his mind continuously, he could probably kill her. The end of the Jedi for good.

 

_Probably won’t._

 

But where to meet her? No doubt she would have a stupid suggestion like Dagobah – there was no way he was stepping foot on that swamp. Even if not for the atrocious smell and the lack of any shelter aside from a gross cave, that place was full of Force ghosts and Kylo wanted no part of it. Maybe _full_ is the wrong word. There are _some_ Force ghosts and he was quite confident he wanted to see none of them.

 

But where could they go where they would be inconspicuous and do their work undisturbed? They could try Corruscant. It was big enough for them to blend in and go unnoticed. Of course him being the Supreme Leader of the First Order and she being the hunted enemy number one of the First Order makes this especially tricky. Hopefully she can think of some remote planet on the outer rim where they can meet up for a few days. _Hopefully less!_

 

He could not leave for an extended amount of time and leave Hux in charge of anything. Hell, even with Kylo alert and on the premises, Hux still took liberties with the army and spent credits on “secret” R&D projects he though Kylo ignorant of.

 

More than a few days away and Hux woul destroy half the universe because it offended his delicate sensibilities in some way. No, he will need help to pull this off.

 

He opened up his comm link and typed in his personal code and waited.

 

“Master, the link is secure, proceed with communication” the deep, familiar voice instantly makes him feel better.

 

“Sunny Ren. Get the Knights ready. I need you on the Finalizer as soon as possible”

 

“Yes Master” and the communication ended as abruptly as it began.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!!! This chapter is on the shorter side as an intro to the Knights of Ren.  
> These guys are a small obsession for me and I'm excited to make them in the image I have for them. I hope you like them as much as I do.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Knights of Ren vacation gets interrupted

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A smidgeon of SMUT!

It was the middle of the night on Cantonica and Sunny Ren knew his fellow knights woul be annoyed to be woken up at this time (some may not even be asleep yet) but when the Master beckons, the Knights come running.

 

Without delay, he opened the comm link and gave the direction as received “Knights of Ren. Assemble for departure in 4 hours, we are heading to the Finalizer”.

 

There were six of them, seven including their Master, Kylo Ren.

 

Seven who have escaped the clutches of the Jedi and their corrupt teachings when Luke Skywalker tried to murder Ben Solo like a coward in the middle of the night.

 

Long before that night, Sunny’s heart was corrupted by the silky arm of the Dark side of the Force.  The same could be said about the other Knights as well. They each saw the Jedi teachings as flawed, for one reason or another and could never fully buy into the whole “light side is the right side” concept. When Ben Solo was attacked, they jumped to his defense and fled with him.

 

Right to the open arms of Supreme Leader Snoke.

 

After they escaped the flaming ruins of the Jedi Temple and pledged themselves to Kylo Ren and the Order of the Knights of Ren, they were dispersed to the Outer Rim and Wild Space on missions that seemed rather unimportant; they soon realized that was Kylo’s way of keeping them off Snoke’s radar. The Knights of Ren were not pledged to the First Order, only Kylo Ren.

 

They completed their mission on Sullust; if one could call baby-sitting an entire population to ensure no rebel factions rose up, a mission. They had been there for an entire year before they heard of Snoke’s demise and the subsequent rise of Master Kylo Ren to Supreme Leader.

 

They all knew what happened; Kylo Ren killed Snoke and took the power for himself. He told them the truth – the Knights of Ren never lied. What they didn’t understand was why he did at that time, so rash, without a plan or their help. Moreover, while they were not surprised that he had killed Snoke - Kylo Ren is no one’s slave - they were surprised he took the place of the Supreme Leader of the First Order. That was not the kind of power Ren was after, not the kind of power any of them were after.

 

 _I’m sure he will explain when we see him; or not. Kind of his prerogative being Master and all._ He shrugged.

 

Sunny Ren was a gentle giant – at least by the standards of the Knights of Ren. Although the same age as Kylo Ren, his big blue eyes, long blonde hair, pouty lips and lack of facial hair make it seem he is so much younger. His youth gave him an air of gentleness that would be disarming, if it wasn’t for his size. He was almost a head taller than Kylo and fought with a double sided light saber and outside of his fellow Knights, no one ever saw him without his jet black mask.  Like the rest of them, he only inspired fear. 

 

There had only been one person in his life who had not made him feel like a wild animal about to attack based on first impressions.

 

He and Auburn Ren grew up on the upper levels Coruscant but had not met until they were both students at Luke Skywalker’s Jedi Academy. In spite of their posh upbringing with the elite of the Galaxy, the air of arrogance that so often accompanies the children of the wealth was missing from them. Which is a good thing because Luke Skywalker’s life of drudgery and chores would’ve beaten it out of them.

 

Auburn Ren was Sunny’s best friend. Although technically a couple years older than him, she had adopted him as her big brother and he has been fulfilling that role ever since he was 13 years old.

 

She was small. Ever for regular humans she was under sized. Her head only reached up to Sunny’s navel. They measured on a particularly mind numbing day on Sullust.

 

She was fit and toned, like all the Knights but her physical strength was a non-factor in a hand to hand fight. Fortunately, she rarely had to fight on her own as Sunny never left her side. Her mind control was the most powerful tool in her arsenal however, only second to Kylo Ren’s abilities and she used them to their full potential. Usually not against her fellow Knights but she has never been above doing it if it guaranteed her the end result she wanted

 

Her talent for reading people had developed early on, before she was even aware of her Force abilities. She was aware from an early age of her effect on people, men specifically. Her strawberry blonde hair that fell to her hips was always loose and wavy, making it look like a halo around her small body. Even with the stern black tunic and overcoat, it is apparent her large breasts were completely unproportioned to her small frame. She was well aware of all all her attributes and she had never been above using them as well.

 

So much so that she rarely wore a mask, generally only using it for dramatic flair. She loved to see the reactions of her targets when she removed it to reveal her heart shaped doll face, with exquisite cheekbones and turned up nose and cat-like steel grey eyes.

 

No one resisted her.

 

A night out roaming Canto Bight recharged her batteries – she was wined, dined and even a marriage proposal from an inebriated Chiss. But as always, she got bored after they were caught in her web and she decided to go back to the hotel and keep Sunny company.

 

And so she found him as he was ending his communication to the Knights.

 

“What’s up Sun?” she asked with a trace of excitement on her lips. She’s itching to get back to the fray.  

 

“Master has summoned us to the Finalizer”

 

“Wonder if he’s done being Supreme Leader yet?” she sniped.

 

“I’m sure he will let us know when we get there. I have a feeling there’s an extensive agenda for us to discuss, we haven’t all been in the same place in almost three years”

 

“ So, how was the ‘nino kid, you’re back sooner than I expected” he asked, already knowing the answer.

 

“You know, same ol’ same ol” she lives for the chase. “Where’s everyone else? When do we leave?”

 

“Well Wyatt and Attari haven’t been back since yesterday, so I’m assuming they’ll crawl in at some point”

 

“And will need to be hosed down and thoroughly disinfected no doubt” Auburn replied with a wide smile. “What about the gruesome twosome?”

 

With the smallest shift in his comfort, Sunny answers “ahem, they haven’t left their room yet”.

 

“And will definitely need to be hosed down and thoroughly disinfected” she giggled, turning into an outright laugh at the sight of his clear discomfort. “Bro, you really have to stop being uncomfortable, it is what it is and has been for ages”.

 

“It makes me nervous about what Master will say. Fraternizing is strictly forbidden for us if you remember Auburn Ren” he sounded stern but she won’t let him ruin her bit of fun.

 

“Listen mother hen. Kylo Ren knows, and he doesn’t care about their _fraternizing_. If he did, they would’ve been expelled a long time ago. Has he said anything about the _awakening_?” she changed the subject brusquely.

 

“Another item for the agenda Abs”  

 

There was a sudden a thud on the door and they both tense into fighting crouches for a second until they both realize the source of the ruckus. “Idiots” they both snarled in the same breath and began packing but not before Auburn took a moment to send a couple Force jolts to their drunk friends in the next room.

 

“And you wonder why no one likes you Auburn Ren” Sunny laughed and ruffled her hair, contradictory to his statement.

 

…

 

_“Knights of Ren. Assemble for departure in 4 hours, we are heading to the Finalizer”._

 

The comm link tunes off and Alix Ren was immediately annoyed. “Fuck” is all she mustered to say.

 

She and C’mmaron have spent an amazing two days of uninterrupted bliss, locked up in their room without anything disturbing them other than room service. She didn’t particularly care for Canto Bight, it would make no difference to her where they were for their first week of vacation in almost three years. Which is now severely cut down by this request from their Master.

 

“Come back to bed” C’mmaron purred and it makes Alix's belly tighten. “We have another three and a half hours until we have to pack and meet the others. And I have plans for every one of those minutes”

 

 _How do you resist that?_ The small smile to herself and jumped back on the bed where C’mmaron was still tied up to the bed posts, watching her stride back with hungry blue eyes and wild black hair.

 

“Fuck you’re gorgeous” she spoke as she straddles C'mmaron's hips and bend down to claim her luscious mouth once more.

 

She could never get enough of her girlfriend. Even though they have been inseparable since she arrived at the Jedi Academy where C’mmaron had been a student for a few months already, they never indulged into their physical relationship until they became Knights of Ren.

 

Their _secret_ relationship. The Knights of Ren followed their own code, adopted from the Jedi and the Sith, with their own amendments. Attachment is forbidden in all. They’re not attached though, they’re not in love. They just fuck.

 

_That’s right Alix Ren. Keep saying it until you believe it._

 

“Now where were we?” Alix asked with a coy smile as she kissed softly down C’mmaron’s throat, down to the collar bone and lazily took one of her stiff pink nipples in her mouth. She flicked it with her tongue, sucked it between her teeth and tugged gently.

 

C’mmaron arched her back with pleasure and jolted her restrains as Alix’ right hand skimmed her stomach and her hip bones, down to her soaking wet cunt. She had already climaex three times tonight and it didn’t look like Alix had any intention of stopping until they had to leave. But she will get her turn….

 

Alix sliped two fingers in her while her thumb drew lazy circles around her clit and C’mmaron already feelt the muscles of her lower abdomen tightening as Alix picked up the pace.  She slid down C’mmaron’s body and her tongue took the place of her thumb, licking her clit and sucking her pussy while her fingers curled inside her, finding that spot inside that made her girl shudder.

 

Alix turned her on her belly with a swift motion, her right hand sliding under her at a better angle for her fingers work faster and harder. She felt Alix bite her ass and she could not hold off any longer. She reached her orgasm, cuming violently and screaming her name as her body shuddered from the release and the tinge of pain of her twisted restraints.

 

They lay together for a few moments, basking in their afterglow and wondering when they would  be allowed to be like this again. Keeping this a secret from the other Knights had been trying and somehow neither woman was not convinced that it had worked. In a roup of Force Sensitives keeping secrets was nearly impossible.

 

Kylo Ren had secrets but he'd been able to keep them to himself because they’ve been away. She’s excited to be with her Master again, they have always been a family and only hearing tid bits of information and so much hear-say about what he’d been through in the last year and a half has made them all uneasy. Still…he could’ve given them a few more days on Cantonica before calling them back to duty.

 

Her train of thought was interrupted by another soft kiss.

 

They still had the rest of this night and they were going to put every single second to good use.

 

 

 

 


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lando visits with news, tough choices must be made

“I cannot compromise the safety of Cloud City under any circumstances” General Lando Carlissian spoke, leaving no room for negotiation.

 

The remnants of the Resistance gathered in the make-shift conference room in the frigid base that had been their home the last year and a half to discuss their new alliance with Bespin. Lando Carlissian was a traitor turned ally turned Rebel General and an important contributor to the fall of the Empire during the Battle of Endor. Above all, Lando had been a part of Leia and Han’s family. For this reason, Poe Dameron does not understand why it took so long for him to answer the call of the Resistance. Then again, he had heard the stories about Lando’s duplicity when it came to standing by his friends’ side.

 

Poe was trying very hard to mask his mixed emotions about this meeting.

 

“So why have you come to Hoth to tell us that you’re not helping us? Your grave silence the last eighteen months told us as much” …. he needed to try harder.

 

“General Dameron” Lando answered without emotion. “Bespin has been free of any outside political influences ever since the Empire was destroyed. The First Order has had its sights set on Cloud City for some time now to turn it into a training station and house their high ranking officers. As it turns out, the Supreme Leader does not care to live aboard the Finalizer any longer and the Supremacy is far from being functional. They have been hinting with all the subtlety the First Order is capable that they will be making a move towards negotiating this as a friendly occupation”

 

“Don’t take this the wrong way General, but since when does the First Order negotiate anything?” interrupted a nervous sounding Finn.

 

“They can’t take it over Bespin without destroying a good portion of Cloud City” answered Lando.

 

“So what are they bringing to the negotiation?” Poe was getting impatient and it showed. “And again I have to ask why have you come here to tell us, is it supposed to make us feel better that you’re not helping us because you’re busy fixing up a vacation home for Kylo Ren?”

 

“If I could just finish, I think you will understand” answered Lando, who was finally beginning to look his age.

 

“As I was saying, the First Order is willing to negotiate taking Cloud City in turn providing immunity for Bespin, so under no uncertain terms can we appear to provide any support for the Resistance. _However,_ I have come up with an alternate plan to move you out of this frozen hell and out of hibernation with the help of another friend”

 

All eyes in the conference room were on him, all holding their breath with hope. Poe, Finn and Connix appeared to be suspicious, hanging on to the bile brought on by Lando’s willingness to work with the First Order before them.

 

“Queen Mirexjya has agreed to let you move your base to Naboo and will provide you with the necessary resources and support to rebuild” Lando smiled at the complete change of expressions at his statement.

 

“This support is extended from the Queen; she has not discussed it with the Parliament and Naboo’s official position in this conflict cannot be anything other than complete neutrality. The First Order has unlimited resources when it comes to paid spies and so outside of the Queen and her hand maidens and myself, no one else is privy to this arrangement.”

 

The room is quiet, all eyes on Poe as if encouraging him to ask his next question “When?”

 

“And how? We can’t just waltz into Theed on the Millennium Falcon in Resistance jump suits and ask for the Queen” added Connix almost impatiently.

 

“Well my dear, that brings me to why I have come to meet you personally”. I will be able to take about half of you in my ship today and deliver you to the Naboo Lake country – you will not be staying in Theed all together, it is too conspicuous. I will come for the rest in a few days. This will give you a chance to pack everything you need and for the others to make the necessary preparations for your arrival”.

 

“Lando, there are only twenty of us, is it really necessary to split us up like this, it feels like we will be so exposed” Finn's voice trembled.

 

“Did you just call me Lando?!” he laughed as Finn’s eyes widened with embarrassment. He was never very good at keeping his separation anxiety under control.

 

“Look kid, I want to help you and this is the best plan I could come up with”.

 

“Why now?” Poe asked, still suspicious and not deterred by the glares aimed at him from all around the room.

 

“Because. I will need your help. When the time comes and your numbers are rebuilt and the Rebellion gains momentum, I need you to free Bespin of the filth of the First Order. Without blowing it up to pieces”.

 

After a few moments of pondering over the discussion they just had, Poe agreed to the proposal. _Anything has to be better than sitting here freezing our asses off waiting to die._

 

“Finn! You, Rose and Rey get on the first ride out of here. You guys and Rey should meet with the Queen and set up on Theed, Connix you and the others go to the Lake Country and get settled in. I will wait for the second transport” Poe orders and is now in full General mode.

 

“Just a minute” Lando spoke nervously. “Rey can’t come”

 

The room was in shock, everyone but Poe and Finn. And they are all realized that Rey was not even in this room and has not been seen since Lando landed.

 

“What in the actual fuck is going on guys?” Rose piped up, decorum totally forgotten in her state of dismay.

 

“Young lady” Lando admonished in a parental tone that did nothing to calm her growing rage. “Rey is the First Order’s most wanted criminal for killing their last Supreme Leader. Her face has been plastered all over the Holonet in all the First Order’s propaganda for the last year and a half. She is the most recognizable person in the galaxy and would be spotted immediately”

 

“We can’t just leave her behind Poe! Finn??” the small woman spoke as her eyes welled up with unshed tears.

 

“Rose, she’s been compromised” Finn’s eyes were glistening with tears as well and he could not manage to lift his eyes from the floor to look at her directly.

 

“What do you mean _compromised?_ ” Rose shouted and everyone else watched the exchange in stunned silence.

 

“It’s the weird Force Bond thing she has with _him_ , it’s back and she still has no way to control it. She can’t be around us until she can sever herself from his thoughts for good. That’s why she’s not here” answered Poe as Rose collapsed into Finn’s arms with tears that were not going to stop any time soon.

 

“How can we leave her here, all alone, after all this time? We’re just as shitty as her shitty parents that left her in that sand trap” her voice was barely audible over her sobs.

 

They all knew she was right, and the hope that Lando brought was suddenly overshadowed by their shared sense of loss. Will there ever be a time where they wouldn't  have to say goodbye to someone they loved because of the First Order?

 

 _Probably not in this life time._ Poe sullenly pondered as he donned his jacket and headed outside in the snow tell Rey what she already knew, that she will be alone again.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey finds ways to combat her loneliness **Just a hint of Damerey here, but have no fear, this is REYLO!

Rey stood at the entrance to the hangar bay, watching the endless snow, trying not to break down into tears. _That won’t help anything_. She waved to Finn and Rose as they made their way into the white abyss holding hands.

  
Her breath was caught in her chest. It could've been due to the stifling cold air, but she had a suspicion that it was her heart breaking into a thousand pieces. Like a puzzle, she was not able to put it back together without the pieces that are slowly leaving her sight making their way towards Lando’s ship.

 

“You’re a brave young lady Rey. Luke would be proud of you” she turned to face Lando. He was helping the Resistance and risked a lot to do so, transporting them unseen to their new home was not going to be an easy feat.  Yet she could not bring herself to fully trust him. She had no reason not to, she had gently prodded his mind, careful not to learn anything about where they’re going and what their plans were and had found nothing to suggest he is anything but genuine in his intentions.

  
“Someone wise once told me we’re not going to win this by killing what we hate. Saving what we love is how we win. I believe that” she spoke with tears streaking her face “General Carlissian, these people are all I have in this world, please take care of them as if they were your own family”.

 

He left for his ship without another word, just a bow of his head towards her in understanding. Ret returned to her cold room where she could finally let the tears flow. This was a hard goodbye, unlike the time she had left Finn with the Resistance on D’Qar, she was uncertain when and if they will see each other again.

 

She coul still feel Rose and Finn’s embrace on her body, like a phantom limb, and already missed their presence as the space suddenly felt overwhelmingly big and empty. How was she going to make it through this once Poe and the others left too?

  
“Do you have an answer for me scavenger?” he was such an unwelcome intrusion. Not that she’d ever welcomed it, but she was feeling low, emotionally exhausted and she was uncertain she could handle his demanding presence.

  
“Please don’t” she pleaded without raising her head from the tear soaked pillow, unable to finish her request.

  
“Are you hurt, what is it?” he sounded almost concerned but his sympathy was the last thing what she needed.

  
“I need you to go away” she spat at him sobbing.

  
She was not surprised that he didn't listen. He never had, why would that change.  What was surprising - jarring if she was honest - was his touch.

  
She felt him move towards her curled up form and gently rub her back with his gloved hand. _Is Kylo fucking Ren trying to comfort me?_

  
“You say that so much, I feel like it could be my middle name at this point” he says and suddenly he stops the gentle motion on her back.

  
“They’re leaving you?!” he gasped. “And like every other wretched thing that’s ever happened to you, this too is MY fault .”

  
” It IS your fault!” she lifted her head up and shouted at the empty room. He was gone and the space was somehow empty again. She almost missed how he had temporarily filled every gap left by her friends’ absence. And that was very unsettling.

  
Almost as unsettling as the effect his brief touch had on her.

 

_No, we’re not going down this road again._

 

She felt his emotions as he felt hers. He was completely unguarded in those moments and she felt his distress at her tears and the quick anger at being the source of them. But before that she felt something else…

  
Could he actually had been glad to see her? Rey felt confused but didn't get a chance to explore those feelings because a knock startled her from her reverie and her door opened with a sharp screech of metal on metal.

  
“Come in Poe”

  
“Rey, I wanted to…” he took a second to take in her tear soaked face. “Oh Rey, I’m so sorry I really wish there was another way. I know you’re right to stay behind but there is no way I can feel good about it” Poe sat on her bed and rested his head in his hands, elbows perched on his knees.

  
Rey reached out and gently swept unruly curls out of his eyes. He the looked at her, glassy eyed. She hadn’t realized how close their faces were to each other and now she could feel his hot breath on her face. He smelled like soap and leather and sweat and as he leaned in she met his lips with her own.

  
They were soft compared to the rough grain of his stubble. His arms feelt so soothing as they move from her arms to her back, clasping her in a tight embrace as he angled his head to his side to fit his mouth over hers.

As she carded her hands through his hair, the softness of their kiss became more urgent. She opened her lips for him and his tongue was in her mouth. Rey followed her instincts,  climbing in his lap as his hands moved lower towards her ass where he cupped her with a guttural moan.

  
This was the salve she needed to seal her wounds. But something didn’t feel right.

 

Her body seems to know what it wanted, responding eagerly to his touch but her mind was screaming at her to stop. Before she could say anything, Poe broke their kiss to look at her and gently caressed the side of her face with his right hand, his calloused fingers traced her jaw and stopped to hold her chin.

  
“We should stop Poe” the words spill out of her mouth before she could even think. She feelt her body protesting the sudden halt in contact with him. Her body revolted with need as Poe shifted and she climbed out of his lap and his embrace.

  
“Yah, umm this is probably the last thing we should be doing” he tried to hide his disappointment unsuccessfully. “I came to see if you were ok; I swear I wasn’t planning on this Rey. To be honest though, I’ve wanted to kiss you for a long time and this may be the last chance I have.”

  
 HIs honesty was so flattering. It was not something she had expected but she knew she couldn't encourage it either, he was leaving in a few days and exploring this now will only lead to an even more painful goodbye.

  
“Poe, we will not be apart for good, I will find a way for all of us to be together again. I will not give up the only family I have.”

  
They looked at each other once more and embraced, their heads resting on the other’s shoulder, hands clasping behind their backs. This was the true comfort she was seeking, the comfort of a friend and they stayed in the embrace for what felt like hours. When he finally stood up to leave she kissed him on the cheek thanked him for his friendship.

  
“Hey kid, you can always count on me for that!” and he left her room with a wink.

  
…

  
Three days passed in the blink of an eye and the rest of the Resistance is off. The last one to leave, Poe pulled her in his arms for one last embrace and gives he a comm link.

  
“I can’t tell you where we’re going, but as soon as you’re free of the bond or if you are in any kind of danger, please contact me” he said and adds “or If you get lonely and need to just talk”.

  
He kissed the top of her head and left. Rey’s stomach was in knots, her breath catching as tears fall once again. She knew this will keep her friends safe and that’s enough comfort for now.

 

She returned to her room, which at this point resembled a nest of porgs. _Damn these things are destructive!_

  
Three of them had successfully managed to tear apart one of her pillows, feathers and down flying everywhere making the inside of her room look like the outside of the base. “Blasted porg bastards!”

  
“What the hell happened here”

  
“You’re back” Rey reacts to his presence without surprise; she felt the bond open and for once was ready for him. “This is the handy work of my inherited and unwanted pets. It seems I can never have a moment of peace these days, even in my room” she moved to the window and pressed her forehead on the glass, closing her eyes with a sigh.

  
“Are you alone now?” he asked, knowing the answer already.

  
“Yup” Rey didn't move or open her eyes “seems to be my destiny to live my life this way.”

  
Before she knew it, the traitor tears spill on her cheeks. That’s when she felt him standing _so_ close, _too_ close. His hands were leaning on the glass on the sides of hers, caging her in with her back pressed into his stomach and his chin rested on top of her head, his nose in her hair as he breathed in her scent.

 

She should've be startled. He bent his head and his lips brushed the contour of her ear as her breath hitched in her throat. “I told you once, you’re not alone”.

  
Her body felt like an electric current has just passed through her, like she had just touched a live wire but she didn't know if it was from fear or anger at the audacity of this touch.

 

She should've push him away. _Yes. Push him away and get a grip._

 

His touch was so soothing. It was almost as if he knew what she truly needed in this moment and he generously provided it to her.

 

More than the comfort of a friend.

 

His proximity was intoxicating and she feelt like prey, immobilized by the venom of an overwhelming predator.

 

She couldn't get her body to move the way she wanted, so she stayed there, leaning her head back into his chest. They stayed there unmoved, watching the violent blizzard outside, ignoring the destruction inside the room until the bond started to fade.

  
“Hoth” she whispered as he disappeared.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you everyone for reading! All comments and thoughts are very much appreciated!


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Knights of Ren reunite with their Master!

_Hoth. Of course they would pick that frozen shit hole as a hiding place._

 

Kylo Ren scoffs back in his quarters on the Finalizer. He was partially mad at himself for not thinking to send a search party there, but it never did occur to him they would be so desperate to recycle that base. Hoth had not been historically successful as a hiding place for the rebellion.

 

His thoughts returned immediately to the scene he was just pulled out of. After their meeting three days ago, he thought all the progress they had made towards meeting to deal with their “situation” has been lost.

 

She was so angry at him and she was right, it was his fault her friends were leaving her. But it was her own fault that she was alone. If she would’ve accepted his offer, she would never had had to worry about that again. They would’ve been partners and ruled side by side, shaping the galaxy and steering it to order. 

 

Not something to dwell on now.

 

Today she told him where she was and he will make the arrangements to get there immediately.

 

Kylo was not a man capable of sentiment. But he still needed to take a moment and examine what had just happened.

 

First of all, he tried to make her feel better, an impulse that he’s had towards her before but it surprised him nonetheless. Also surprising, if that is the correct description, was his decision to be so physically close to her. _It wasn’t a decision though was it?_

 

No, he had no control over his body in that moment. He went to her and when he bent his head to touch hers he could smell her and he had lost all control for the span of a few minutes. His mind wanted him to step away, control himself and get her to agree to meet him but his body was only answering to his emotions.

 

Dangerous emotions.

 

He realized that he liked her pressed up against his body. _Really_ liked it. Her breath was so hot against his face when he leaned in to speak, her body heat had melted him. He was now thinking what it would be like to kiss that spot where the ear meet her jaw, to lick down her throat and bite her where her slender neck meet her clavicle, pushing her harder against the window…

 

“Supreme Leader” the comm link chirped.

 

_For fuck’s sakes Ren! Get your shit together, where the hell did that come from!_

 

“What is it” he barked back irritated.

 

“Sir, the Knights of Ren will be landing in thirty minutes”

 

“Good” he ends the communication briskly.

 

_Finally._

 

He’d missed them. They were his true family. All had pledged themselves to him and to their cause. They have been his constant support since they left the Jedi temple and had been on his side ever since. He’d been separated from them for much too long.

 

Kylo had always ordered them on time consuming missions that had successfully kept them out of Snoke’s grasp and he had sacrificed his own body to save them from his “training” methods. They knew everything he’s been through at the hands of his former master and they’d always been thankful to him for his interventions.

 

But for the last year and a half he had been trying to bring them closer. With them here, he feelt more comfortable as Supreme Leader and will have true friends to confide in. Not to mention that they were the only people who understood that he never wanted this _position;_ the power he sought resided in the Force and it did not entail occupying a throne. But to leave it all in the hands of Armitage Hux was not an option.

 

The contentment he experienced at the thought of reuniting with his own friends made him think of the girl’s suffering and he felt a wave compassion for her and her loneliness.

 

His compassion for her was the weakness his old master had exploited. Not only had Kylo been unable to crush it, but it seemed to be gaining proportions. This recent need to want to touch her is just another piece of evidence pointing to that fact.

 

He should talk to his Knights about it, but he had not been entirely forthcoming about that part of the story. In fact, he had not mentioned her at all. Which was a mistake.

 

When he had told them that he had killed Snoke using the Resistance’s attack on the Supremacy as a distraction they were overjoyed but he knew, deep down, that they didn’t believe him. Abs had even asked him _“why now Master, what did he do to solidify your decision?”_

 

“You forget your place Auburn Ren” he had snarled at her and the subject was closed. But oh no, they weren’t fooled and he needed to give them a better explanation of his actions.

 

He arranged for a briefing with them after their dinner tonight which provided him with a few hours to make a decision about what he was going to tell them before his house of cards came tumbling down and he lost their respect and support.

 

Of course Auburn had sniffed it out immediately. _That girl’s ability to read people is ridiculous_.

She had always been like that, even as an untrained teenager. She barely used the Force to get inside their minds. She barely used the Force period and this annoyed him. She had always gotten by on minimum efforts and that made her lazy in her training. Rectifying that was another item on Kylo’s agenda.

 

It was unacceptable for any of his Knights to be so complacent about their Force powers. He had more or less entrusted Sunny, a veritable spiritual gangster, to continue her training. Given his borderline fanatic devotion to Force education and mediation, Kylo had given him the responsibility of guiding the entire group and act as his second in command.

 

Not even remotely surprised was he to find that Sunny had completely lost control of Auburn Ren. The woman has him wrapped around her little finger. He’d never seen a relationship like this. He knew there was nothing of a sexual nature between the two of them nor had there ever been, but they were inseparable and held together by a completely unexplainable bond.

 

It was brought to his attention the last time they had been together over three years ago, when he was still Kylo Ren apprentice to Supreme Leader Snoke.

 

They had just ended a training session and they were laying exhausted on the training floor. Attari, Wyatt and him were hydrating and letting their breath calm down, while patching their various wounds and scrapes. It was a two on one drill while the others watched. He had bested them of course but he didn’t get away unscathed. As they were taking their moment of respite, he caught a glimpse of Sunny literally carrying Auburn on his back to her room....because her feet hurt. Sunny has just been beaten in a three-on-one match against C’mmaron Alix and Abs, and somehow she’s managed to wrangle him into giving her a piggy back ride.

 

“That right there Master, is a whipped man” Attari said as both him and Wyatt howled with laughter. Kylo was concerned at how attached Sunny was to his fellow Knight. Not concerned enough to say anything about it though.

 

Attari and Wyatt were fierce. Both relatively the same height as Kylo, the Force used them as vessels for pure untamed power. In battle they were the vanguard on each side of him, the three of them always moving as a unit, unstoppable.

 

Off the battle field however, they could not have been any more different from each other. Attari’s family owned the Canto Bight Casino and Track on Cantonica. He was spoiled as a child, being the only child of such a wealthy couple had provided him with all the luxuries others couldn’t dream of. And yet he always felt there was something missing in his life, that he needed something credits could not give him. He had heard through casino gossip about the Jedi temple and he left his home the same day. Technically he relinquished his family’s fortune, but he is still their only heir and his father could not bear to cut him off. And so Attari Ren became the primary financier of the Knights of Ren.

 

Kylo remembered meeting him the first day at the temple. Ben Solo was thirteen and Attari was seventeen, already a grown man, his hulking body intimidating even at that age. The impression he had left on the female students was entirely different; they almost swooned over his ebony skin, his deep dark eyes, full lips and dimples. These of course, were not his own musings. In a group of barely trained Force sensitives, the thoughts belonging to a pack of hormonal teenage girls were expressed loudly and often. He still has a way with the ladies, flirting is like breathing to him.

 

Kylo had missed them all but Wyatt Ren the most. He was a runaway from Corelia who had left his parents before they could sell him into slavery. A smuggler had found him stowed on his ship and brought him to Luke. He was only thirteen and that was too young to be of any use in that industry. He was painfully shy. While Ben Solo was brooding, Wyatt was almost feral. In an odd way, their isolation had been what bonded them. Not to the extent Auburn and Sunny had been magnetized to each other, Ben and Wyatt had become close in their youth. They always gave each other support when training, learning and most importantly when one of them had required space.

 

The Master of the Knights of Ren didn’t have favorites. But Wyatt was certainly a contender for that spot. He had been the first to defend Ben Solo after Luke’s attack and his most loyal supporter ever since they ran off the island. Wyatt had killed for him that day without hesitation and had done so on countless other occasions. No doubt he will have to do it again.

 

He admired Wyatt’s resilience most of all. He had embraced the teachings of the Dark side of the Force, but he had done so academically not out of anger. Wyatt had never let his parent’s choices have any power over him, he had accepted their vileness and had made the choice to extricate himself rather than ask them to change themselves. He didn’t feel any unresolved anger towards his parents, he didn’t feel anything towards them and so they had no power over him. Something Kylo envied very much.

 

His was the first face Kylo sees coming of the transport. Wyatt’s ice blue eyes meet Kylo’s immediately as he respectfully nodded his greeting to him.

 

 _That is some haircut Wyatt Ren._ Kylo sent his thoughts to his friend. He had shaved both sides of his head while the blonde hair on top of his head cascaded onto one side. He had also let his facial hair grow wild, sporting a thick beard that hides his youthful features.

 

Attari followed closely behind. To anyone outside of his circle of Knights, their mere presence was incredibly intimidating. As demonstrated by the troopers in the hangar giving them all a wider berth than normally.

 

C’mmaron and Alix followed in tandem down the ramp, nodding to him respectfully and eliciting a different kind of reaction from the troopers.

 

 _Barking up the wrong tree fellas_.

 

He shielded these thoughts from the others. It irked him that they think they have outfoxed him. Just because he had chosen to not say anything about their relationship didn't mean he was ok with it. Attachment was one of the only rules the Knights of Ren had agreed to follow strictly. But he couldn't exactly chastise them without addressing Sunny and Auburn’s “relationship” as well.

 

None of these are conversations were discussions he wanted to have with his friends. He wasn't keen on them getting all their secrets out in the open, especially considering the numerous skeletons in his own closet. He’d wondered a few times what the Knights really knew of his affairs.

 

C’mmaron and Alix had gone to extensive efforts to hide their relationship from him, as far as denying it to themselves and yet he had so easily gained the knowledge. If it was that easy for him, was it just as easy for someone like Wyatt or Auburn to figure him out?

 

_Guess we’ll find out soon enough._

 

“My word” Kylo heard behind him and his irritation grew ten-fold at the sound of the nasally voice.

 

“General Hux” he saluted curtly.

 

“Supreme Leader. Pardon my intrusion but I heard all the Knights of Ren were coming on board and I wanted to personally welcome them and introduce myself”

 

_Trying to find an angle to advance his position no doubt._

 

“I was planning on introducing them after they were settled in and we have had supper and debriefed but since you’re already here we can certainly get this done and over with” Kylo replied through gritted teeth.

 

Kylo didn't have to look around to know Auburn Ren was sauntering down the ramp. He could sense the lust growing in Hux’s mind as he watched her jog down the ramp towards them.

 

_Force help me._

 

Kylo rolled his eyes at Hux and turned to greet the last two of his Knights. Sunny was the last out of course, like the protector that he was.

 

“General Hux!” he barked as the man turned a fiery shade of red at the embarrassment of being caught staring at a pair of bouncing breasts like a teenager.

 

“These are the Knights of Ren. Wyatt Ren, Attari Ren, C’mmaron Ren, Alix Ren, Sunny Ren and Auburn Ren. They are an extension of myself and you and your men will show them the same respect and loyalty as you have showed me.”

 

Hux doesn’t have a response; he was still staring. Getting right under Kylo's skin.

 

_Abs could you kindly stop fucking with the help?_

 

_Sorry Master. It just happens._

 

All the Knights and Kylo scoffed at the same time at this exchange and that did not go unnoticed. Even Hux, who had generally been tone deaf to Kylo's Force abilities seemed to get ripped out of his reverie and finally saluted them.

 

“Welcome aboard the Finalizer. If there is anything you require during your stay here, please come to me directly. I so look forward to your report of the mission on Sollust” he was dripping with insincerity and Kylo was beyond aggravated with his presence.

 

“The Knights will be staying in my wing until we can depart to Cloud City. Tonight we will be dining _alone_ in my quarters. Please see that we are not interrupted.” That was Hux’s queue to leave, which he did but not before giving Auburn Ren another quick once over.

 

_Whatever you’re thinking Auburn, just don’t._

 

Kylo asks for the entire group to hear and was only answered by a giggle so mischievous that it brought on his own smile as they began the trek towards their rooms.

 

***

 

The Knights and their Supreme Leader were powerful, beautiful and inspire fear and awe in all who encountered them. Kylo Ren seemed to be more powerful than ever in the context of the Knights of Ren, finally wearing a uniform of a different type of army. As the group moved out of sight, the troopers and officers in the hangar bay collectively let out a sigh with a breath they were all holding.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two chapters in a day, this one just wrote itself. As soon as my brain thinks about the Knights of Ren they just jump out on the page. I hope you all love them as much as I do


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Knights missions are discussed. Kylo and Rey have another bond moment.

“This is ridiculous!” Kylo Ren is pinching the bridge of his nose and deciding how to respond to Auburn’s outburst. He had expected this reaction when he had made the decision to split them up.

“Auburn Ren!” Sunny rarely raises his tone of voice and it has a startling effect on all the Knights, including their Master.

“I just don’t understand why we need to be separated” she pleads with Sunny and Kylo.

Kylo knew separating Auburn and Sunny would be difficult but he had not realized, until he saw her eyes glistening with tears, how attached she had become to him. Separating them is necessary for the mission but Kylo now sees that it is vital for their identities to have a time and place divide between the two. Sunny’s outburst just now confirmed his instincts; he is restraining himself much more efficiently that Auburn but he is struggling with the idea of not being by her side.

“I know the missions given to you since we left Skywalker have been tedious and without any satisfactory results. But this is different; this is important to us Knights of Ren and for a change, we are not in service to the First Order.” Kylo says in a quiet, firm tone and all the Knights are once again facing him.

This has been a long night already. After they were settled in their rooms, Kylo had hosted the Knights for dinner in his quarters. They haven’t sat down for a meal all together since Snoke took them in, and that was by no means a relaxed affair.

That night they pledged themselves to Snoke and the First Order but all knew the only oath that mattered was the one they made to Kylo and themselves. 

Tonight’s dinner was a lavish 5 course affair, Kylo doting on them knowing that they haven’t had real food in ages. He made sure to incorporate everyone’s favorite, starting with C’Marron’s vegetable soup, ending with Wyatt’s sugared brown pears and everything in between.

Kylo also had Corellian Wine brought in for their supper and the debriefing. They quickly went over the operations on Sullust – this was information Hux was after and Kylo didn’t dwell on any of the brief details they had given him. He had more important matters to discuss and he knew his Knights had a lot of questions. Questions he did not want to answer yet.

“We need to return to our purpose” he had begun gravely. “The First Order’s control is relatively unchallenged at this time and we can finally return to our mission as Knights of Ren. We are the last Guardians of the Whills and must bring the Balance back to the Force”

This had been their mission since they left Luke. They knew in their hearts that the Jedi were too dogmatic about the light, that the Force was so out of balance at the Jedi Temple it almost screamed. For all of them, reaching to the Dark side of the Force offered a relief from the pressure of the light.

They all knew Snoke took advantage of Ben Solo’s exploration of the Dark side and used his pain to corrupt him slowly. Of course, in the end it had been Luke Skywalker who sent Ben right into the expectant claws of Snoke.

They had followed him without question, hoping that in the end, he would realize how unbalanced he still is, his heart so skewed towards the dark, feeding on his own pain and enslaving himself more and more to Snoke with each atrocious act committed in the name of the First Order.

And that day came when they had found out he had killed Snoke. The story the rest of the world knew is that Skywalker’s Jedi student infiltrated the Supremacy and had murdered the Supreme Leader and his Praetorian Guard but he had told them the truth. They were expecting it.

They had not expected him to take up the mantra of the First Order as Supreme Leader however. Meeting Hux had made them understand.

Hearing Kylo broaching the subject of their true purpose had energized the Knights with hope and determination.

“We can finally return to our search of the Jedi temples” Sunny had said, a step ahead of the others.

“Yes Sunny” confirmed Kylo. “C’mmaron and Alix, you will head to Lothal. The Jedi Temple is believed to be under the surface of the planet and your knowledge of the north plains will be invaluable in helping you locate it. Only through the use of the Force can the entrance be exposed, but you need to be careful. The use of the Force can also bring out the Loth-wolves”.

C’mmaron Ren seems excited at the prospect but the glint in her eye immediately disappears as she takes note of Alix’s change in demeanor.

“When do we leave Master?” is all Alix asks in a cool tone of voice. She has never returned to her home world since she joined the Jedi and she never cared to even hear the name of the cursed world.

“We will all leave tomorrow”.

“You’re leaving too Master?” asks Attari, voicing everyone’s question.

“I am going to Hoth for a few days. I have been given reliable information that Skywalker may have stashed some of the original Jedi texts in the old Rebellion base and I need to find it for myself. The planet is completely empty and has been for some time, this should be relatively quick”

“Hoth? Why that frozen hell?” Asked Wyatt Ren scrunching his nose in his obvious disdain.

“It’s likely he assumed, rather correctly, that no one would be likely to either purposely search for them there or accidentally stumble upon them” Sunny chimed in. Finding the Jedi texts and Jedi and Sith artifacts is Sunny Ren’s passion and the Force is swirling with anticipation around him.

“Speaking of frozen hell…..Wyatt Ren, you are heading to Ilum. This should be a relatively short trip however, get into the temple, search it and head to Cloud City on Bespin from there. The temple has been abandoned for ages but it is easy to find. There really won’t be anyone there to give you any trouble, maybe some wild life so stay aware.”

“Yes Master” is the only reply but Wyatt is not happy to spend any quality time on the ice planet and he makes no effort to hide his thoughts from Kylo.

“Once you’re back on Bespin, I need you to get a hold of Calrissian and start the arrangements for our living and training quarters”.

“Attari, I need you to stay here on the Finalizer while I’m on Hoth to take up my day to day duties, a vast majority of that time you will find is spent keeping an eye on Hux. He is working on another weapon. In secret. He is under the impression that I haven’t taken the time to look through the First Order’s books and have any knowledge of his pet project. In all fairness, I don’t know what he’s up to and I need you to find out”

“We all felt the disturbance in the Force he left after the Hosnian System destruction and from Endor more recently. We have to prevent him this type of mass destruction of life before he creates a permanent rift in the Force.” Sunny chimes in and all the Knights bow their heads in agreement. Being Force Sensitives has few disadvantages, one being the physical pain suffered during any disturbance brought on by insurmountable loss of life or an awakening.   

The awakening they all felt, who turned out to be the scavenger from Jakku whom maimed their master, under the tutelage of Luke Skywalker and his flawed Jedi dogma. They had still not discussed her actual role in what had happened on Starkiller Base or on the Supremacy. How exactly did she defeat Kylo Ren? And why is he so unwilling to approach the subject of the last Jedi and her whereabouts.  Surely….they will have to deal with her soon, the ways of the Jedi need to die, as the ways of the Sith had, for the Force to begin rebalancing. Killing her is almost necessary, but wasteful. Killing Force Wielders is always wasteful….

Sunny can feel Kylo Ren watching him intently as he’s delving through his thoughts. _We will not kill her, that much is certain. I promise you Sunny, we will deal with her once we are in Cloud City. I will have all the explanations you all seek but I don’t want to get into everything now._

“Sunny, I need you to head to Jedha. You have the most knowledge of the history of the Jedi order and I think the Temple there will show you the information we need.”

“Jedha is the first place Skywalker and Snoke searched. Do you really think there is anything left in those ruins that hasn’t been found yet?” Auburn chimed in impatiently.

“Auburn, Sunny is going to Jedha alone” Kylo had paused to give her a moment to process. And as expected, her reaction was vehemently negative.

“He needs to be alone on Jedha, without distractions of any kind” she is offended at that. She doesn’t see herself as a distraction, but their attachment and their utter unawareness of it, their inability to see themselves as individuals rather than a “we” is troubling.

She’s sulking and it’s making Kylo irate, but she doesn’t seem to care.

“Auburn I have a different mission altogether for you but I will fill you in when you have mediated and calmed down”

With that, the Knights are dismissed and return to their quarters, leaving Kylo to his thoughts. He does feel guilty about not being honest with them about the girl, but he needs to see her first. And luckily that’s soon.

He can feel his Knights close by and their excitement at being together, at working towards their greater goal and the edginess caused by their need to be separated, if even for a short time.

 _Ughhhhh!!!_ Another clear disadvantage of being Force Sensitive is other Force Sensitives’ inability to control their thoughts while having sex. Very loud, very uninhibited Force sex. He is certain everyone can hear Alix and C’mmaron in such close proximity and maybe he should make them aware they have an audience.

Then again, that would only prompt a discussion with them about a subject he didn’t care to discuss at all. Their fraternizing should be punished; it is completely against their code but he feels like a hypocrite enforcing any rules since he has broken so many already. The others must be better at blocking this out, he can’t feel any discontent from them.

 _Gruesome Twosome makes perfect sense._ He muses and heads to take a shower, hoping the noise of the water will down out everything else around him.

He’s concentrating so hard on blocking out the women next door that he doesn’t notice the Bond is open.

He opens his eyes to meet hers and the girl is standing in front of him in her night clothes, in his shower, trapped between his naked body and the wall.

“Oh Fuck” he manages to hiss out and turns around abruptly to cover himself with his hands as much as possible. She’s still behind him but he can feel her shock permeating through his skin.

He turns the shower off and grabs a towel in haste to wrap around his lower body, giving her a chance to gather her thoughts. He can hear her heart beating through her chest. Is the sight of him naked that shocking? He’s getting annoyed at the thought.

“Can you please get dressed” she asks, face still completely flushed.

“Why are you the one who’s making demands here? I believe you were the one who barged into my shower”

”Like what you saw?” he can’t help himself. That was very Han Solo-ish of him.

Her reaction is not what he anticipated. Yes, embarrassed and blushing but the punch that came across the bond was not. Her fist connected with the underside of his jaw. Obviously she was aiming at his face but made no calculation for their height difference.

After the takes a moment to catch his breath, he takes a couple steps to bridge the gap between the two of them and straightens himself to his full height. He knows he is looming over her and he’s glad to see a hint of intimidation in her eyes. Does she expect him to hit her back?

“Who fucking throat punches a naked person? Is this something your boyfriend taught you, because it’s considered pretty low brow for a Jedi”

The look of intimidation is completely erased from her face and she starts laughing. Laughing! In his face, howling and tearing up, she bends over at the waist and smacks her own knees in her amusement.

“Excuse me, was that a snort?”

She just looks up at him, her face is streaked with tears from her laughing fit.

“I’m sorry, it is so surreal that I just punched the Supreme Leader of the First Order after I walked in on him mid shower. You have to see how ridiculous it is to be in my shoes right now”

She might have a point there, he’s always been very pragmatic about any situation he has encountered and he’s never wasted any time thinking about how anyone else was experiencing him. But that isn’t something he’s about to start now.

“Those pajamas are what’s ridiculous” he goads her and that seems to put an end to her laughter for now. He will have to think later on why the sounds of her laugh had seemed to warm him. Add that to the expanding list of questions Kylo Ren can’t seem to find an answer to. He’s a mess.

“I’m coming to Hoth tomorrow and we will spend every minute we have available to go through those texts and find an end to this bond business. Not that getting punched by an asshole scavenger while standing half naked in my bathroom in the middle of the night isn’t fun”

“I’ll be here” she says without any emotion and luckily the bond fades away.

He’s left standing in his towel, wondering if the Knights could also feel her presence. Wondering how exactly he’s going to explain the bruise forming below his jaw. Most of all, wondering why he is so enticed by the thought of seeing her again in person. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading! I have a lot of this story mapped out but these introductory chapters are taking me forever to write. It will all come together I promise!


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A whole chapter of Rey and Kylo. Kind of got away from me!

As much as she wishes for it, sleep never comes to Rey. She’s been tossing and turning the entire night and she can see the sun starting to rise.

He’s coming here. Sometime today. The thought should terrify her but it doesn’t. She’s not exactly looking forward to sharing a space with him either. He takes up so much room, not only is he humongous but emotionally…well if his feelings and thoughts could take up physical room they would probably fill the entire base. 

Would they deal with any of those while he’s here? He’s very much all about business, the business at hand of course is putting an end to their bond. Should they even discuss how they left things off after Snoke, or his mother’s passing, or Crait, or any of it? Would he take any responsibility for how things are?

Why does it even matter? It’s not like they are friends or had any kind of relationship to begin with, other than being mortal enemies. They hate each other and one day they will kill each other.

“Hmph” she sighs frustrated and decides to give in and get out of bed, starting her day.

She pours herself a double pot of kaf, full to the brim. She never used to drink the stuff, mostly due to its unavailability and impracticability on Jakku. Any dehydrating substances were not a wise choice on a desert planet. She also never had wine before, but thanks to Poe and the other pilots she’s been introduced to that as well. Leia particularly enjoyed a glass of good red Corelian every day after supper and Rey had joined her on a number of occasions. In the endless cold of Hoth, a glass of wine provided a different kind of warmth and comfort.

The kaf is a must on a daily basis. She feels its results after about 20 minutes, how her entire body wakes from what seems like hibernation, she can feel her brain powering up as her thoughts begin to focus. How has she lived without it? It’s now her routine to enjoy her kaf sitting at the table in front of the large conference room window and watch the snow fall, more or less procrastinating from going back to her texts.

She doesn’t understand them and that is frustrating for her. She’s never encountered any piece of machinery she could not fix, even if it was unfamiliar to her. Machines are easy, you can take them apart, see how their innards work, put them back together and that is that. Machines are black and white that way, there is no middle ground. They either work, or they don’t. A yes or a no.

Very different than anything else she has to deal with “Jedi-wise”. She’s attempted to fix her lightsaber on several occasions but has only managed to completely take it apart. She’s read in the her books that the lightsaber is a Jedi’s life and only when a padawan has completed their training, were they able to build a saber, and so becoming a Jedi Knight. So it makes sense, she’s no Jedi Knight and not a padawan. She’s no Jedi. But the saber had chosen her, had called to her on Takodana so why won’t it cooperate with her anymore?

The books are difficult to get through. She’s read them all, with the help of C3P0 but she doesn’t understand them. Part of it is her limited education in any subject outside of mechanics and barter commerce. She had limited knowledge of politics and galactic history so a lot of the information in these texts was out of context for her. Leia had taught her the history of the Rebellion, from her point of view which had been incredibly interesting, but feels incomplete.

The book she enjoys reading the most is the Journal of the Whills. The other books are heavy reads discussing meditation techniques, fighting forms with and without a saber and her least favorite, the texts discussing the way of the Jedi through self-denial, lack of attachment and passion and chastity. Not that in her current circumstances she would have any other choice but she doesn’t understand how a lack of friends, family and love would make any one a better person. She would’ve made a horrible Jedi had she stayed with Luke.

Come to think of it, _he_ was trained as a Jedi before he was corrupted to the dark side. The dark side she had only briefly experienced herself, but she understood on some level why he went to it so eagerly. It was so seductive to have so much freedom, no restrictions, no judgements. But the dark never imposed itself on her; it never asked her to kill, it never asked her to take vengeance or destroy. It just fueled what was already in her and it gave her power. The power to not question her own actions and strike with certainty.

She knows that’s what happened in Snoke’s throne room. She fought and killed the guards with a clear, focused mind, without any guilt or second thoughts.

But Starkiller was a different story. She had no training at that point, all her power and skills came from his mind, like he had transferred his abilities to her in that moment when their minds touched. She had tasted the thrill of combat and had circled him like prey using the Force, like a tool tapped into as needed. He uses the Dark side of the Force in those moments and she had done the same. She wants to think that not killing him that day was a decision she had made, but she’s lying to herself. If the ground hadn’t cracked around them ripping them apart, she would’ve finished him.

She’s glad she didn’t though. She had learned so much through their connection, not from him directly but because of him, she was able to look inside herself and understand the Force in her own way. She realized when she left the Supremacy that she was a vessel of the Force and not the other way around. That she was able to fight and defeat the Praetorians by letting the Dark side of the Force take over, not by using it. This is a lesson she should teach him but he needs to realize it on his own.

She also realized something else, when he appeared to her kneeling on the floor of the base on Crait: she had little compassion left for him.

She had felt compassion for him when she thought he was tricked into turning to the dark side and she felt empathy for his inner struggle between the dark and the light. But after she had understood the Force in the way it was presenting itself to her, she knew that if he just let go, stopped using for his purposes and stopped blaming it for his choices, he would be at peace. When he hunted the Resistance on Crait, determined in a blind rage to finish them off, it was his choice not the Dark side. That is why he failed to see through Luke’s trickery. It was not the Force influencing him when he tried to kill them all; it was Kylo Ren. A man using violence and vengeance to heal his pain. A man with choices, who had chosen wrong. A man who at that time did not deserve compassion.

A man who still can be redeemed. But not by her. Not by anyone else. Ben Solo and Kylo Ren must find a way to coexist within him. That is the only way for his conflict to end.

The kaf is now done. Thinking about him in this way has become part of her routine in the last few days, since the bond started manifesting itself. She doesn’t fight it but she has to stop now, so she can go about her day and wait for him.

Force knows, if she didn’t have a holopad to entertain herself she would lose her mind with her thoughts alone to keep her company. It’s so funny how she had spent all her life on her own, but after a year and a half of constant camaraderie, she can no longer bare complete silence for an extended amount of time.

_Hopefully I won’t have to kill him while he’s here._

That’s a startling thought and she stands up from the table, ready for her chores.

And there are plenty of those! Running a decrepit rebellion base is certainly not a one man business but if she wants to not freeze or starve to death, she needs to get going. She has to spend a few hours outside and is not in any way excited at the prospect.

She gets up and pulls up the white snow pants Connix had left her, tucks her green long sleeve shirt inside and pulls the suspenders over her shoulders. The shirt is made out of sweat wicking material, which she’s very thankful for. The last thing you want when working in extreme cold weather is to have sweat rolling down your back or pooling around your core. Connix had left her the coat as well. Filled with down with a big hood and reaching to just above her knees, this coat as been a life saver. There was no way she would’ve been able to manage hours of being outside without the snow suit.

She pulls her hair in two braids that fall just below her navel; she needs a hair cut but she’s been too busy to worry about it and braided like this, it doesn’t get in her way. She zips up her coat and lets the braids hang outside of it.

 She pulls up her thick leather gloves but her chores demand a second layer of protection.

“Mittens” is a new word she had learned since they arrived on Hoth. Leia had knitted them and gifted them to her, not knowing what a precious gift her thoughtfulness and affection was to the lonely orphan from Jakku. 

Rey remembers with a smile how impressed Finn had been at how the General had “conjured” hand protection out of yarn, with only the use of two skinny metal rods she had found, in just a matter of hours. So fascinated in fact, that he had asked Leia to teach him and that lead to a new after dinner routine for them. In the room they used as a conference room, they had a brazier where they light a fire every night.  Rey would lounge close by to it and read her Jedi texts, while Leia and Finn sat across from her in their padded chairs and knitted. All the while enjoying a nice glass or two of wine. The silence was always comfortable. She missed them so much and the cozy domesticity they had was something that hurt to think about.

Her and Finn had continued the tradition even after Leia had passed. He had knitted her a cowl and a hat to match the white mittens Leia had given her. He was very good at it in truth, and she loved everything he had made her, even the ridiculous tuft on top of her hat. He called it a pom, but had never explained its purpose, and she suspected it had none.

She wore it every day when she needed to go outside and was very thankful for her friends’ kindness. She pulled up the hood of her jacket over the hat and pulled her mittens over her gloves. Tied the cowl  around the outside of the hood and headed out.

The goggles she donned she had found while they were cleaning the base after settling in and they were invaluable, like the ones she used on Jakku while scavenging. They protected her eyes from snow and debris and prevented her lashes from freezing completely.

There were a lot of things she needed to do on a daily basis just to keep everything running without problems.

Some electrical equipment is happy being brandished to the frozen tundra outside while other just dies with a whimper, usually at the worst time. 

The electric utility transformers are inherent heat producers and prefer to be in colder weather. However, if they are buried in show, they cannot dispense the heat they produce and that could lead to failure, which means no electricity for the base, which would be very very inconvenient for her. So she trucks through the snow and digs them out using a big shovel. She could probably use the Force to do it, but that seems wasteful and using the Force is not always easy on her body. When she lifted the rocks on Crait and freed the Resistance survivors from the blocked tunnel, she had a migraine for days after. Besides, a bit of manual labour never hurt her and it allowed her to blow off some steam.

Next up, the standby generator. This piece of machinery keeps everything running smoothly in case of a power failure. It needs to be turned on and run for at least ten minutes every day so that all the moving parts are properly lubricated and there is no freezing.

She also has to make sure she clears a path to the standby generator from the base in case she needs to turn it on manually in case it doesn’t automatically kick in if needed.

The base also receives auxiliary power from solar panels locate about a mile away from the base. To get to them down the hill, she had fashioned, with help from Rose, a very rudimentary but effective mode of transportation. The women found a large piece of plastic, likely part of a track from one of the old broken snowspeeders. Rose had rounded its edges and attached magnetic foot bindings to it, where Rey’s boots could click into place. She could then use her legs and her core to glide down the steep hill where the panels were located.

This was her favorite part of the day. Shimmying down the snow mountain was exhilarating. Today she didn’t have to do any work as the snow had not piled up on the panels (their angle usually prevented snow from building up). It is not as cold as usual and the snow is falling a lazy pace and she gets an idea.

She runs back up the hill where she can see the base, straps her boots back in the bindings and slides back down, this time enjoying every curve and every bump. She does this another three times and she can’t get enough of the feeling of freedom this simple activity gives her. Her only companions are the two vulptices that had come with them from Crait. They chase her and chase each other and roll down in the snow until she can only see a ball of crystal, powder and the sound of happy growls.

She thinks how much Rose and Poe would enjoy this, maybe Finn and Connix too. She wants to hope that one day they could, that one day they’ll be able to enjoy being  free and young and foolish.

When she makes it to the bottom of her course she feels it. A shift in the energy around her, an almost heavy static in the air. She climbs the slope quickly and then he sees the upsilon class command shuttle landing in the snow, next to the open hangar bay.

He’s wearing the long overcoat and cowl he had on Takodana when she first met him. No mask this time. A gust of wind blows the hood off his head and his dark waves blow away from his face, somewhat softening his appearance and making him seem less menacing.

“What are you doing” he asks with genuine curiosity in his voice as he’s stepping down the ramp, almost in a strut.

“I was making the most of this beautiful afternoon” she puts her hand out and catches a few snow flakes in her mitten.

“It’s minus a thousand degrees. And you’re outside doing what appears to be a whole lot of screwing around” he snipes at her as she makes her way closer to him. He’s always chastising her when she sees him and he talks to her like she’s an underling.

Either he was distracted by the cold, or busy thinking of other ways to insult her because he did not sense being approached from his flank.

“What the fuck!!!” he yells out as the sharp little vicious teeth sink into his left calf.

“He obviously hasn’t gotten over Crait” she barks with laughter and doubles over as the critter scurries away to stand next to his sister at Rey’s feet.

“Just how many random animals do you have living here? Do you also have a pet Wampa I should be aware of for fucks sakes?” he’s still sort of yelling, bending over to rub his injured leg, a little too dramatic in Rey’s opinion.

“This is Luna and you’ve already met Max” she says in her most serious voice, barely containing her laughter and closes some of the space between them. “ My security system”.

He scouls at her ( _always pounting)_ she thinks. To be fair, they’ve never met over casual or pleasant circumstances to warrant a different expression from his face. Still…his grumpiness will make this an even less pleasant few days.

“Okay Supreme Leader, let’s get inside and get this business over with”.

He stalks behind her, fists clenched in annoyance and …nervousness?

…..

Kylo's had a couple of hours to settle in his room while she finished her maintenance tasks inside the base. His room is small, much smaller than his lavish quarters on the Finalizer but he doesn’t hate it all together. He is likely not going to spend any more than a couple days here anyways. That bed though…that is going to be an issue. The only way he is going to fit on it is if he sleeps in a ball, on his side, without moving a single inch.

He sighs but his internal grumblings are interrupted by the smell of food. Real food! That’s a surprise as he was more than prepared to be eating rations the entire time he was here.

The noise his stomach just made gets him on his feet and moving towards where his nose is taking him.

He walks in the kitchen, which is very well equipped for being located in an old military relic.

The room is shaped like a galley, one side hosing a wall of cupboards and shelves, a couple of stoves and a double sink. Across the room there is a dining table that could easily accommodate a couple dozen people, with a bench on one side and a built in banquette on the other. There are no windows in this room but there are two doors at each end. One he just came through, and one leading towards a sitting room of sorts, where he can see a fire burning in a brazier.

On the table he can see steam rising from a medium sized pot. What he smells can only be one thing: mushroom stew and another surprise. That had been one of his favorite meals as a child. While Leia Organa Solo was a fierce general and an accomplished Senator, she was no cook. Mushroom stew was one of the only dishes she had mastered and so she had cooked it often for him and Han, not that either minded it. Those family dinners though were few and far between.

He sits down on the banquette in front of a bowl she’s left out for him and peeks in the pot to confirm he was not mistaken about dinner. Across the kitchen, the girl is opening one of the ovens to take something out and he can feel his mouth watering.

“Is that …bread?” he sounds almost excited…as excited as Kylo Ren can get.

“Yes it is, just baked it” she answers him without turning around.

“You baked it.” He’s astonished. No one bakes these days and on the Finalizer the meals are all planned by nutrition droids, the intake of carbs being carefully controlled, like everything else really. Fresh bread is certainly not something that is readily available, even at the request of the Supreme Leader.

“Well, I thought I could maybe buy Max some amnesty” she turns around and he can see the lifted corners of her mouth and the dimples starting to form in her cheeks.

 _Laugh it up scavenger, that little fucker will get what’s coming to him._  

He notices she’s showered. She’s wearing a pair of lose grey trousers that hang around her hips and a white long sleeve top with a waffle pattern that looks very soft and warm. Her hair is in a loose braid and hangs down one of her shoulders, reaching to her waist. He takes in her appearance and ensures he his guarding his thoughts when he notes her lack of underthings. He can clearly see the outline of her pert breasts and pebbled nipples through her shirt and he feels some heat pooling in his groin at the sight.

Those trousers she’s wearing are thin enough that the presence of panties would be noticed, so his logical conclusion is that there aren’t any.

She has a smoking hot body and thinking about her in that way makes him swallow drly with a loud gulp.

“Guess you like bread hey?” she asks, obviously assuming that’s what that was about.

“Ehem..yah” he’s relieved she didn’t seem to notice his eyes skiming her entire body. _You’re a fucking disgrace Ren._ He reprimands himself.

She sits on the bench in a spot across the table from him and places the cutting board with the freshly cut bread next to the pot of stew between them. She folds her legs under herself in meditation stance, fills her bowl and digs in. He’s taken a bit back by how comfortable she is around him and he thinks she may be the only living person in the galaxy who is not afraid of him. And that is not an unpleasant thought.

They eat in silence. He was hungry and the stew is just as delicious as he remembered and the fresh bread is amazing. He ate a second helping of stew and probably two thirds of the loaf of bread.

“So, when do you want to get started. I assume your worship has duties to get back to? Planets to blow up, populations to subjugate, such and so forth?”

That’s annoying. She’s trying to get under his skin and it’s working. He can feel his eye twitching as he’s clenching his jaw and grinding his teeth.

“You need this just as much as I do girl.” He answers in a flat voice.

“Why don’t we attempt to be civil with each other while we’re here together and we can go back to being enemies once this bond is dead”

“Fair” she says with a nod then gets up and leaves the room. He raises his hands in the air with complete ire.

_She is such an asshole_

He doesn’t even get to finish his venomous thought because she returns with a pile of books.

“The sacred Jedi Texts!” she drops them on the table in front of him. He leans his back on the side walls and brings his legs up on the banquette.

He never thought he would get to see these books and he feels a small thanks is warranted to her for saving them and agreeing to share them with him. _Hell will freeze over before I thank her for anything._

She returns from the room next door with a bottle of Corelian Red and two ceramic mugs. She pours the wine in both and slides one over to him.

“This is tradition” she says and her voice is a small wisper.

“Do we toast to the beginning of a friendship” he asks sarcastically.

“How’s about we toast to not killing each other on the first day? Celebrate small victories.” She answers leaning over to him and holding her mug out.

“Cheers to that” he says and leans in to clink her mug, then takes a big gulp.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do we think about Rey snowboarding? seems like something she would be really good at if she had the time eh?  
> thanks for reading!!!


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another fun day of casual hangin out with Kylo and Rey on Hoth. So many feelings. A small bit of violence. A dash of smut ish in the end.

Two bottles of red and close to five hours later, they called it a night. Kylo and Rey spent their time diligently sifting through the Jedi texts she had appropriated from Ach-To, searching desperately for anything that described a bond like theirs.  If they could understand why it formed, they would be able to unravel it.

Kylo wasn’t certain if it was their proximity or the wine or a mixture of both, but the Force around them hummed with an electricity he had never encountered before. Once he got to his cot, he felt exhausted but calm somehow and for the first time in ages, he was able to give into sleep and drift off as soon as his head hit the pillow.

He woke up after some time, content with the silence surrounding him and allowing himself the luxury of a gentle wakening. His eyes were still closed and he could feel the gentle rays of the morning sun coming through the window, gently caressing the side of his face and tickling his cheek. Tickling...wait… _what the hell?_

His eyes snapped open and to his displeasure he makes eye contact with the fuzzy intruder touching him.

“What are you?”

He’s seen it in one of their bond visits? Is visits the correct nomenclature for what those were? Anyways, this critter appears to be avian but unnaturally chunky. So chunky that the prospect of it even attempting to fly to even a short destination is dubious at best.

He shoos it away with a swat of his arm and sits up on his cot. On the window sills there are another three of them, watching him with big dumb eyes. _Creepy_

He huffs with annoyance and gets up. He slept in his clothes but he did managed to remove his belt and quilted tunic and hang them neatly on the back of his chair. He leaves the room without getting fully dressed, wearing his boots, trousers and a thick knit sweater, all of course black.

He lumbers over to the tiny ‘fresher in the hallway to wash his face and brush his teeth. He also attempts, quite unsuccessfully, to tame the wild mess of curly black hair. He gives up almost immediately and makes his way into the kitchen, where he can smell fresh kaf and is forever grateful to her for not drinking all of it.

He finds the biggest mug he can manage and fills it to the brim. His eyes wonder around the spacious kitchen and land back on the books they were studying last night.

_Aionomica_

The book is at the bottom of the pile but he knows it so well its identity is unmistakable. He sits down in the same spot as he did just hours ago and he thumbs through the first few pages, while sipping his kaf.

Rey had obviously been tending to her duties outside as he could sense her approaching the base now.

She walks in a few minutes later, fully decked out in her snow gear. He takes in her appearance and sees the mittens, the familiarity of the workmanship making him flinch ever so slightly, but he makes no mention of it.

“Good morning” she greets him cheerfully, shuffling over to the kaf pot. Which of course is empty to her immense chagrin.

“Ok Kylo! There are rules around here! The first rule is that there always needs to be hot kaf available or there will be hell to pay. Whoever drinks the last of it, has to make a new pot. I know you probably have droids and servants doing this kind of thing for you so you, but it’s just you and I out here and I am not your servant”.

“Sorry” is all he says as he watches her remove her coat and snow pants with one hand while filling up the kaf maker with water and fine grind.

“Have you been practicing any of the Jedi fighting forms in this book? He asks. “I imagine Luke went over all of them with you”

She’s watching him intently as she’s removing ice from her braids. “Ahem…not quite” she pours herself some fresh kaf and walks over to the table, leaving her clothes in a pile on the floor. He’s just dying to pick them up and hang them properly, but restrains himself.

“I learned them from that book on my own and I practice them every day but…I don’t have a working light saber so it’s somewhat pointless” she sighs, sips and continues. “You know, I tried to fix it. I took it apart and read the entire “light saber” text but I could not put it back together. It’s almost like a puzzle missing a piece”.

“You are missing a piece” he replies.

She lifts her eyebrows with curiosity and he continues before she has a chance to ask.

“Every Jedi builds their own light saber as a rite of passage from padawan to Jedi Knight, the kyber crystal needs to be attuned to you. That is the only way to get the Force to guide you so you can finish building it.”

“How do I do that?”

“You meditate with it. Your energy within the Force will permeate it and give it life. This is also where they get their colours. Unless the kyber is from Ilum, then it can only be blue or green.”

She looks at him with interest and he takes that as a que to continue.

“You don’t need the book either. Once the crystal is attuned to you, the Force guides your hands until the weapon is completed”

“Can I go do this right now?” she asks with a spark of excitement he completely understands. He cannot imagine a minute away from his own saber, let alone a year and a half. The saber is a Jedi’s life, a Jedi with no light saber is no Jedi.

“No. You need to be alone to be able to concentrate. Besides, me being in such close quarters with you will probably culminate with some of my energy permeating yours and corrupting your crystal.”

She rolls her eyes at him. _Brat_

It’s sort of endearing the way she looks at him right now; like he’s a real teacher.

“Thank you” she adds and that is completely unexpected.

“For?”

“For sharing this information with me when you didn’t have to.”

“How else would I get a rematch of Starkliller if you don’t have a saber to duel with?” he expertly dodged having to get into any sort of friendly discussion with the girl.

“So ok, let’s get back to the books then” she says, still chipper. “And maybe after dinner we can spar a bit? Practice hand-to-hand combat?”

He’s taken back a bit at her request. He should turn her down; she’s a quick study and everything he’s teaching her will, without a doubt, be used against him in the foreseeable future.

“Please Kylo? Almost everything I know about combat I learned from you when we touched on Takodana. You said you wanted to be my teacher, here’s your chance”

He knows he never had a chance to turn her down. He was going to teach her anyways, but it was nice to hear her as for it.

“Yah alright. But that is only secondary to our mission here, which is to research these sinfully dully books for anything that will snuff out this bond. I need to get back to my life at some point, I can maybe take a week away from the First Order operations so we need to get to it.”

“A week? That will be very long if you forget to refill the kaf maker every day” she teases and sits down across from him, pulling out another book he knows very well.

“The Journal of the Whills”

“Yes” she looks at him with anticipation “This one is my favorite. Even though I don’t completely understand it”.

“Me too”

“Really” she says flatly with cynicism. “No offence but I would think your preferences were more geared towards the bloody violence variety”

“They are. But this book is The truth of the nature of the Force. It is one of the reasons why we turned away from the Jedi teachings, before Luke tried to kill me in my sleep”.

Closing his eyes and with a long exhale he says “I am with the Force, the Force is with me”

“All is as the Force wills it” she continues in a soft whisper.

“If it wasn’t Snoke who forget this bond between us, then it was the will of the Force”

“Ok, but if the Force willed it Kylo, how are you and I going to be able to break it?”

“I don’t think the Force decided to bind us arbitrarily. We made choices that lead us here. The Force doesn’t have our paths set, but every choice made will lead to a future that it has already pre-determined for us”.

“Hmm” she says thoughtfully “Doesn’t it seem like that tenet could be easily abused? All is as the Force wills it is an easy way to justify any choice a person makes. And they’re never wrong, or truly accountable for their actions because the “Force wills it”” she uses air quotes and that irks him.

“That’s a very simple way to look at an absolute truth. The way the Jedi and the Sith see and use the Force is one dimensional and incomplete. What did Luke teach you about the Jedi code, I very much doubt he would’ve touched on the Sith code at all.”

“Umm…he was not really into teaching me per se. More so interested in explaining to me why he didn’t want to show me anything and why the ways of the Jedi had to die”.

“Don’t take it too personally, he was a shit teacher even when I was a padawan”.

“Kylo, to be honest, he taught me nothing. I stole the books to save them because he was going to burn them and the Uneti tree during one of his fits. Why do you think I turned to you in the end? It wasn’t because I was having a life changing experience full of wondrous education” she sighs.

“What I’ve gathered from what I read is that ‘the Grey Jedi sight’ is what will bring the balance to the force and the Galaxy. But how? And what role does that leave for you and me, if any?” she asks.

He had wondered that very thing himself countless times. The Knights of Ren are now the Guardians of the Whills. There were no more Sith, there were no more Jedi, but there is still so much turmoil in the galaxy, the Force is screaming out of balance.

“I don’t know” he answered honestly. “What I understand from this book is that we need to look at the Force and understand it holistically. The Force is equal parts Light and Dark and a sway to one extreme or the other will put it out of balance. When the Force is out of balance, chaos ensues. The Jedi set the Force out of balance. Their religion and teaching became fanatical of the Light, shifting farther and farther away from the teachings of the Whills. They oversimplified the Dark side, equating it in its entirety to evil. They stopped trying to understand it as a part of the Force, but instead making it seem the opposite of Light, its enemy. After generations of Jedi learning only this extremist Light-centric dogma, they only feared the Dark side and tried to snuff it out.” He paused to sip his kaf.

“But the Light cannot exist without the Dark. They need each other to provide boundaries, shape and context. The Jedi tried to kill the darkness in all of us rather than acknowledge it and nurturing its existence with Light. All the rules of the Jedi code are designed to keep the dark at bay. Abstinence, detachments and lack of passion are difficult standards to live by. Ambition, sex, love, friendship, families…these are all natural wants for humans and fighting the desire for them leads to failure”.

He looks at her and she looks so fascinated but contrite at the same time.

“I know that’s what Luke tried to do when he disappeared to Ach-To. His life there was filled with regrets, self-pity and the pain of his failures. The only way he could truly detach was to close himself off from the Force. Kylo, you know so much about balance, but you are only using the Dark side of the force and you’re using it to fulfill your purposes. How is that any different that the Jedi?”

Not something he hasn’t asked himself. Until he has an answer to himself however, he will not get into this discussion with anyone. Let alone her.

“The Dark side allows passion to flourish, it feeds from your fears, your anger and your pain to give you power. You felt it. Your hatred for me fueled you on Starkiller. Your hatred for Snoke gave you power to fight the entire Praetorian Guard. There is darkness in you, don’t shrink from it”.

“I know there is and I’ve never turned from it and I don’t fear it. But you’re wrong. It wasn’t my hate for you that gave me strength on Starkiller, it was my grief of losing Han. And it wasn’t hate for Snoke that strengthened me on the Supremacy; it was love for my friends and the need to protect you. I don’t fear the Dark side, but I fear depending too much on it will make me like…”

“Like me”

“Well yes. Luke said to me he had only seen this much power in you before me and he feared it. You went straight into the Dark, you killed your own father and broke all attachment. I had no one and came from nothing but Han and Finn and the Resistance took me in and became my family and I could never give them up. I don’t understand how you could do that. That much darkness scares me.”

“Don’t think for a second you can talk to me about my Darkness girl. You presume to know me based on what? Everything you think you know came from Luke and Leia. They both feared me and were relieved when I left them.” He can feel himself lose control over his temper, his fists clenched at his sides.

“Don’t forget Kylo, that I was in your head too. I’ve seen some of the things you’ve done first hand and experienced the heaviness of the Dark side through you. Your family loved you! And you threw it away and twisted that pain into a rationalization for your choices, absolving yourself from taking any responsibility for your actions. You killed both your Masters and are now the most powerful and feared man in the entire Galaxy. You got everything you wanted so why are you so fucking mean and miserable still? The past is dead, there is no one tying you down with unhealthy attachments…”

“Just you” the words slipped out of his mouth, he did not mean to say them out loud.

“The Force has tied me to you for a reason girl, and until I figure out whatever lesson it is trying to teach me, to teach us I guess, it won’t fade”

“It could be true that you’re the Force’s Chosen One or whatever, continuing the legacy of your grandfather but why me? I am nobody. From nowhere. Without a place in this story, like you said.

“That could be your lesson to learn scavenger” this conversation has exhausted him. His control on his emotions is weaning and they’re not getting anything done.

“There are things that we may never understand about each other and things we disagree on”

“Like…everything?” her interruption only serves to annoy him further.

“Be that as it may, we need to make an effort to keep the discussions on the Force on a strictly pedagogical level. If we keep attacking each other personally, we will never accomplish anything”

“Do you think that’s possible, for us to work together? You hate me so much”

“I don’t hate you girl. Do you not realize that every time we met, you were the one to shoot first? You didn’t even know who I was when you shot at me in the forest on Takodana. You were going to kill me on Starkiller Base and you would have if the planet hadn’t split open between us. You were going to kill me on the Supremacy if I wasn’t quick to stop you from taking the light saber. You seem to think you are so pure, so good, certainly much better than I am but you’re wrong. You’re just as dark as I am, but much more of a coward for not embracing the dark inside you, denying your potential and your power so other’s opinion of your goodness doesn’t sway” he’s shouting at her now and stands up to loom over her across the table.

“Fuck you Kylo Ren!” she stands up and slams her hands on the table, in an attempt to seem like she wasn’t intimidated of him.

“I’m nothing like you! I could have killed you on the Supremacy. I woke before you did and I could’ve murdered you without a second thought. I could’ve taken your saber and left you weaponless and I could’ve told everyone the truth of who murdered Snoke. But I didn’t”

“Why?”

“Because! Because your life wasn’t mine to take. Because the Force isn’t done with you and I do not enjoy killing indiscriminately. Because you were the only person in the world who understood me absolutely.  Because I needed you to explain why”

“Why what? Just say it girl, I’m already beyond pissed off, just get it over with”

‘Why you chose the First Order, over your mother, over your father? I ...I came to you with everything I had, without restraint so I could help you, and you chose the First fucking Order, their power and evil over everything else”

“I offered you everything and you ran away to the resistance. Don’t lie to yourself girl, you came to save Ben Solo. You came to be the hero the resistance so desperately needed, to be the Jedi who turned Kylo Ren to the light. You came to use me.”

“You’re so foolish and small minded Ren! Not everyone thinks of life as a quid-pro-quo game. I’m not nearly as calculating as you give me credit. I had nothing and I gave you everything and all you wanted was my power, to use it and me to best achieve your goals. You never thought to ask me what I wanted, what I felt about everything that was happening around me and to me. You spent your entire life in the Force, learning about it, training with it, using it. I had it for a week maybe, do you realize how incredibly scary that is to a person? Can you fathom what it was like for a worthless lonely orphan scavenger from Jakku to all of the sudden have this incredible gift and then to realize everyone is after it in one way or another? Of course not, because that would mean you gave a fuck about anything outside of yourself.”

He’s so done with this entire conversation. Her words feel like a grater on an open wound. Everything is too raw and the Force is swirling around them, snapping and hissing with dark energy, feeding from their fight. He needs to leave. Now.

He steps out of the kitchen and into his room, he throws his over coat and cowl on and heads outside.

_You betrayed me. I opened myself up to you, I let you in my mind, I let you see everything. And you chose Ben Solo_

He projected that to her across their bond. He feels like he is an open wound, festering with infection.

He needed to destroy something but he will not give her the satisfaction of an all out destruction inside the base. He finds a few boulders frozen in ice and they will do just fine. He makes minced meat of them, but he is not feeling anything nearing relief.

He feels like he’s a tornado. His feelings are so muddled, so present on the surface and his mind is cloudy with rage. Rage at her but mostly at himself and his complete lack of control over everything. He’s a mess. Was coming here a huge mistake?

He saunters over to his ship and steps inside. He needs to check in with Hux and Peavey and see how his Knights are making out with their missions so far. He’s not hiding from her, no he’s most definitely not hiding.

A couple of hours go by and he can see the sun beginning to set. He should return to the base.

Hux and Peavey reported business as usual on the Finalizer and with the rest of the Order. Peavey did let him know of a group of five troopers who had defected but were apprehended and executed before they made it anywhere. Ever since FN2187 killed Phasma, more and more troopers ran away from Hux’s army. He doesn’t fault them. Hux’s conditioning program is effective as it is totally inhumane. Kylo would just as soon free the soldiers and commission a clone army, but Hux would hear nothing of it. He tells him it’s too expensive, but deep down Kylo knows Hux’s only joy in life is to tame men and bring them to heel. The thought of what this man would do with any real power makes Kylo shudder. _A rabid cur indeed._

He can tell Hux is displeased Attari Ren was left behind to tend to Kylo Ren’s duties but it’s not his prerogative to decide to whom the Supreme Leader delegates power. Hux knows he’s being watched and baby sat but he doesn’t have the gumption to whine to him about it.

Wyatt Ren was already on the way to Bespin. His trip to Illum was just as Kylo had suspected it would be: short and fruitless. But every avenue had to be verified.

“Master, is everything ok, you seem…you seem agitated” he had asked him.

“I will explain everything when we have more time. In person” Wyatt had not been the first to ask him that. C’mmaron and Sunny Ren had asked him the same question but he could not get into the matter of Rey and her awakening or her role in Snoke’s murder yet, mostly because he doesn’t know how he really feels about it and has no idea how this will end. He does know that he can’t keep this to himself much longer and he is irritated at how things have been progressing.

Speaking of irritating….Auburn Ren has not checked in with him yet, even though he knows she was at her destination before he even landed on Hoth. She’s pissed at him. She thinks her mission is pointless and not worthy of her abilities and she thinks Kylo sent her to Naboo to keep her occupied and away from Sunny Ren.

That part is true; Sunny Ren needs to focus on Jedha, his mission is highly spiritual in nature, he needs to connect with the planet itself and he cannot be distracted. Auburn’s mission is not useless either; he has it on very good authority that the resistance is housed on Naboo and are actively recruiting again with help from their sympathizers. He sent Auburn there to infiltrate their ranks and use her talents to bring chaos within the ranks of the resistance. If they couldn’t blame the First Order for their failure but it came from dissent on the inside of their organization, the rest of the Galaxy will see how useless and outdated their methods are, and their allies will withdraw their support. Auburn may be pissed, but after a few days of sulking she will report to him and get to business. She has never let him down and he knows she will rise to this occasion as always.

He had this information for some time but had decided against sharing it with the First Order. Mostly because he doesn’t want Hux to bring open war to Naboo and commit political suicide at the same time as witnessing his inheritance blow up in smoke.

He inherited all of Queen Amidala’s properties after Leia Organa had passed. He hadn’t been planet fall on Naboo since he was a child and what he remembers of his grandmother’s house is a feeling, a vibe more than actual memories. He loved it there because he had felt at peace, happy, free and he remembers learning how to swim in the lake and freely running and climbing the hills covered in wild flowers and how much contentment that brought to his soul.

He takes those feelings and wraps them around himself like armor and heads back inside the base.

He heads to the kitchen where she is busy making dinner. His stomach growls loudly and he finds himself wondering if she will share again.

“Can you please grab us some bowls and spoons?” she points to a cupboard to her left without turning around.

_Guess that answers that._

He was dreading his return in her proximity and the conversation he had anticipated. The one where she’s right and he’s the world’s biggest asshole. He’s heard this play out a few times as a stand-by casualty of the Organa – Solo war raging in his childhood home. The girl appeared to handle things differently and he could not be any more relieved. Why deal with anything when we can just act like it never happened? _Works for me._

He gets the bowls and spoons and sets them on the table, taking his seat. It is not completely lost on him that he, Kylo Ren, Supreme Leader of the First Order, has his own seat at a table in a resistance base. Life is strange.

She brings over the same steaming pot she had used yesterday but this time it is filled with a flagrant vegetable soup with protein noodles. His mouth is watering and when she brings over the fresh baked bread he is very grateful that she is a better person than he and has decided to share her meal with him again.

“Thank you”

“You’re welcome” she says slurping a spoon full of soup. She likes to slurp liquids; he makes a mental note and adds it to the growing list of idiosyncrasies he’s discovered about her already. Why he’s cataloguing personality quirks of his perceived nemesis is not entirely something he can explain.

They eat their meal in silence and he then helps her clean up.

“Are you ready for some hand-to-hand combat?” she asks

“I’m always ready scavenger, are you sure you want to do this?”

“Been looking forward to it all afternoon” she smiles so wide that he can see her pronounced dimples and his breath hitches for a half second.

They move to the sitting room and rearrange the furniture to give them enough room to spar properly without sacrificing the only comfortable chairs in the base as collateral damage to their training.

Standing across the room, Kylo crouches to a defensive stance and waves her over. “Come girl, show me what you’ve got”.

The change in her facial expression startles him; her sweet smile is gone and has been replaced with a wild grimace. She almost hisses between her teeth and launches herself at him. Like the time she attacked him in his ‘fresher, he is taken by total surprise. Unlike that encounter, she has successfully connected her fist to the meaty part of his nose and he can feel the blood gushing. She didn’t break it, but it wouldn’t have taken much more.

She hasn’t stopped her assault on him yet. Her vicious punches continue to connect with his torso and his arms and he realizes that he has made a serious miscalculation.

He thought her serenity at dinner had come from mediation, or her abilities to wield the light or in general being a much better person than he. But no, she is just better at hiding her feelings than he thought. She was clearly not over their earlier confrontation and instead of meditating to resolve it, she had stewed on it all afternoon, patiently waiting for the moment to properly take it out on him.

“How very Sith of you” he snarls and throws her off him, flinging her back to the other side of the room.

She’s almost foaming at the mouth with rage as she gets up to her feet and lunges for him again. This time he’s expecting it and doges out of her way maintaining his defensive crouch and letting her hit the ground, hard.

“You can’t physically beat me girl. I’m much bigger than you and have been training for as long as you have been alive”

“Fuck you. Fight me”

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you” he lurches at her as the last word comes out of his mouth. She skillfully dodges the blow of his fist and returns a quick upper cut to his kidney but in doing so, she has left herself exposed and vulnerable to his attack.

He shifts his left arm so it reaches behind him across her shoulders, grabs a hold of her and spins her so she is pressed against him, her back to his chest. He has her head in a vice grip between his bicep and forearm and he squeezes her in a headlock, bringing her to her knees. She is still fighting, kicking him with her heels and he is impressed with her fortitude.

He pushes her flat to the ground and uses his own body weight to keep her from moving. He brings his head down to the floor next to her ear and he can smell her shampoo and sweat and something else that’s just her. He whispers viciously:

“I told you girl. You can’t defeat me without the use of the Force. But you’re a good fighter and I will teach you this move. But you need to calm the fuck down”

“Get.Off. Me!”

“Make me” he growls. He can taste his own blood still trickling out of his nose and he can feel the Force charged and crackling around them.

She wiggles under him to try and pull away and he is very aware that their bodies are now touching more than they ever had and his own groin is squarely pressed to her firm bottom. The friction from her small movement under him has just precipitated half of his blood to leave his brain and pool around his crotch.

His mind is getting cloudy again, wondering. Wondering if she can feel that he’s getting hard. Mostly though, wondering what it would be like to rip those pants off her, spank her insolent tight little ass and then fuck her senseless right here on this floor.

“Umm…what?” she gasps under him.

Yup, he definitely had projected ALL of that across their bond, mental picture and all. _Super!_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! There will be some actual good ol' fashioned smut making it's way to the page in the next few chapters. I won't change the tags because I rated the story explicit and that should encompass the smutty bits as well as the salty language  
> They're young and have stressful lives, I do feel that casual F bombs and such would not be uncommon in their vernacular.  
> thank you for your support!


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A bit of smutty smut here and there never hurt anyone ;)

He gets up and off her in one fluid motion and his initial instinct is to run. Get as far away from her as possible.

The sudden, overpowering bout of pure lust that had blindsided him, combined with his lack of control over his thoughts in that moment is troubling all on its own. Having her actively participating in his moment of frailty as both a witness and the cause of his weakness is excruciating. Snoke had told him that it was his own weakness, not her strength that was making him fail and he had not believed it until now.

She’s now standing up and staring at him, her cheeks flushed from the effort of their scrap but likely more so from the images he had carelessly thrown into their bond.

If he gives into his instinct to run away, she will know just how much power she has over him. No, cowering in fear is not his style. Besides, it’s not _her_ it’s just the proximity they found themselves in, the unexpected friction and the fact that he hasn’t gotten laid in a few weeks. It makes so much sense why sex was so controlled in the First Order, this type of situation could be incredibly dangerous.

He hates that he just gave credit to Snoke two times in the past 10 seconds.

“You should go clean your nose Kylo, you’re bleeding all over your fancy sweater”

She just gave him the perfect out and he takes it.

_Get. A fucking. Grip_

He looks at himself in the mirror with disgust and resolves to return to the kitchen. If she is game to pretend that never happened, that’s just fine with him.

She’s standing by the table, wine bottle in hand, clearly back to the task of deciphering the Jedi texts. Probably a good idea to be done sparring for now, the tenderness of his nose coming suddenly to the forefront of his mind. On the scale of injuries he’s suffered, it’s nothing, but it is unlikely that he will suffer any further injury while drinking wine and reading ancient, so-dull documents.  

He’s never wanted a drink any more than right now and takes a good sized gulp. She slurps hers, of course.

The Force around them is so thick, so charged and it feels heavy, like pressure on his chest.

“I feel I too” she says

_Holy fuck, can I not contain a single thought?_

She didn’t answer to that, but she’s still looking at him, her big doe eyes burning him where he stands, expecting him to say something, provide an explanation and be the teacher he had agreed to be earlier. But all he can do is look at her, truly seeing her.  

He gazes at her parted pink lips, her expressive wide eyes, the dimples in her cheeks, her long wavy hair draped around her. He can’t stop and is not aware how much time has passed since he’s said anything. Could be seconds, could be hours. But in this moment, he knows there are three unequivocal truths: one – she is breathtakingly gorgeous. Two – everything he had said to himself minutes ago to justify his lust for her was utter bullshit. And three – he wanted her. Badly.

She swallows and looks up nervously at him and he just reacts. He closes the space with them with one step and seals his lips to hers. She kisses him back and it’s sublime. Her lips are so soft on his, her hands making their way to his shoulders and his hair. He flicks his tongue over her lower lip and she opens up for him, yearning for him to explore her mouth with his. _Unbelievable_ he thinks and he doesn’t care if that is just for him or if she can hear it too.

He thinks he should stop but that’s a fleeting thought. She’s just as eager as he is now, her tongue massaging his, her body pressing his into the table behind him while her hands are fisted into his hair, pulling him to her. That triggers a loud grunt out of him and he feels his cock twitch. He wants more, he needs more.

His hands slide down from her waist to her supple behind, his rough squeezing making her moan in his mouth again. His vision blurs, his mind blanks. There is nothing else, there is only this moment and her and his need for her.

He slows their kiss, grazing her lower lip with his teeth and pulling just slightly away from her body so he can look at her. She’s so deliciously disheveled, her hair wild, lips swollen from his ministrations and he feels completely crazed.

He lowers his head and kisses her cheek, licking a trail up her jaw towards her ear. She responds to him by arching her back and her neck, giving him full access to her throat, where he licks her and nibbles softly. She moans loudly this time and he’s never felt more like a predator ready to strike the unsuspecting prey who has left herself vulnerable to his attack. But in truth, he knows all the power lies with her, that if she were to stop him at this point, he would be ruined.

He grips her ass firmly in his hands and turns her around, shifting their bodies so he is now pinning her between him and the table, continuing his exploration. He licks down the side of it; her skin there is so soft, so delicate and sensitive, every flick of his tongue is rewarded with a soft mewling from her. Meanwhile his hands are roaming over her tight abdomen, making their way up to her breasts and cups them in his hands. She sucks in air through her teeth loudly at that and he can’t stop himself from biting her neck and sucking a small welt in the space where it meets her clavicle.

His hands slip under her shirt, greedily rushing back to her breasts. He had seen their outline through her shirt the day before, but hadn’t consciously realized how much he wanted to touch them. He finds her nipples and gently rolls them between his thumb and forefinger, pressing his growing erection into her back side as she cries out with pleasure. His left hand continues the attentions on her breasts, alternating from one to the other, while his right hand slides down the soft skin of her tummy, towards the band of her trousers, quickly reaching his destination. He cups her pussy over her pants and can feel how wet she is already.

_Fuck I want her!_

Her panting is encouraging him to continue. He uses his index and middle fingers to stroke lazily on the outline of her slit, making her push her hips into his groin, her ass rubbing on his throbbing cock. While his fingers continue their teasing motion, his thumb finds her clit and starts rubbing slow circles around her engorged bloom. She’s moaning out of breath under his touch, writhing and rolling her hips into him, making him wild with desire.

“Rey” his voice is gruff with lust. The Force around them is heady to the point he feels like it’s suffocating him.

“I want to fuck you”

She doesn’t respond and although her body gives him all kinds of green lights, he senses some hesitation from her and he stammers.

He brings his mouth to the side of her face and softly kisses her right next to her lips and again closer to her ear. He nips her earlobe and whispers to her “Tell me what you like sweetheart, don’t be shy. I want fuck you the way you like”

“I…ah…don’t…” she can’t get the words out because he is still rubbing her.

“Rey?”

“I don’t know what I like” he can see the blush deepening in her cheeks with embarrassment.

“I know what I want to do to you but I’d like to hear your thoughts on the matter” his voice is low and gruff.

He can feel her completely freeze under him. “I have no frame of reference” she whispers so quietly he doesn’t know if she actually said the words or if she thought them through the bond.

He’s shell shocked. He assumed that she was fairly inexperienced but this…this is unexpected. As if he needed confirmation he says “You’re…you’re a virgin”

“Yes” she says and she pulls her shirt down as his hands release her body parts he was just beginning to explore.

“I’m sorry” is all he says remorse instantly taking over his lust. “I had no idea, I got completely carried away, I just thought we were on the same page. I shouldn’t have said…I shouldn’t have…ugh I really do apologize” he feels like such a shit, she is so inexperienced and he’d just manhandled her.

Now that he’s had a second to see things with a semblance of clarity he’s disturbed at his actions.  He’s Kylo Ren, the Master of the Knights of Ren and Supreme Leader of the First order and he was about to fuck the last remaining Jedi. Not just fuck her, but he almost took her virginity, which she appears to have been more than willing to give to him. No, the regret he will no doubt see in those beautiful eyes once she realized what she’d done afterwards would be his undoing,

“I…um…”she says as she take a seat on the table looking up at him so sweetly “I’m not sorry” she lowers her eyes, her lashes fan over her supple cheekbones and continues with a small whisper “I liked it”

“Rey, we can’t. I can’t” and he turns away from her confused expression. This time he does run.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's never easy with these two! The next update will deal with Rey's take on things.  
> Smutty smut is really hard to write I realized today so kudos to all the fabulous authors who make it seem so easy!  
> As always, thank you for reading!


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The aftermath of the kitchen incident. Neither do talking good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's smut!

Rey watches him walk briskly out of the kitchen and disappear into the hallway.

The wild range of emotions she had gone through had simply paralyzed her in her seat. The Force in the room resembles a thick, murky fog, which has been slowly dissipating since he left the room but not enough to clear her mind.

“What the hell was that?” she knew she needed to make sense of everything that just happened, but she would have to go to the privacy of her room for that. She suspected that Kylo would not be coming back based on his swift exit, but she didn’t want to risk another encounter with him just in case. Not until she could answer the question herself.

She finishes her wine – wine always helps – and gets back to her room.

Once she’s changed into the pajamas, the ones he had ridiculed through the bond a few nights ago, she sits on her cot and mindlessly runs her fingers over Luna’s surface. They’re not exactly cuddly, covered in hard crystals, but they like it when she gently caresses the surface of their backs and bellies. Max is asleep in the pile of blankets she had laid out for them as a nest of sorts.

_Seriously though, what in the actual fuck is this day?_ She mentally quotes Rose, this being one of her favorite ways to express her bewilderment.

She needs to go through everything that’s happened today methodically, to make sense of everything, if that is possible.

Their first attempt at studying had ended with them shouting in each other’s faces. Although them not resorting to physical violence at that point had been a small victory.

He had left for a few hours, sulking in his ship, probably plotting her demise while long distance Force choking some poor underling.

He called her a _traitor_ and left, letting it linger with her in their bond along with his hurt and betrayal he was feeling towards her actions. She wished he would’ve spoken to her about it, she had her own opinions on everything that went on between them while she was on Ach-To and on the Supremacy. The truth is somewhere in the middle, they were both hurting so much still, so raw, bringing it up would end in them fighting. He was such a coward for broaching it that way.  

He gave her lots of time to cool down, but instead she had used it to stew. And stew she did! By the time he scurried back inside for dinner she felt like a primed ion cannon, ready to blow something up at a moment’s notice. Which, unfortunately for him, had been his slightly skewed nose. It did not even occur to her to be afraid of him in that moment, although a smart person would caution against sucker punching the most unstable Dark Sider in the Galaxy.

Rose would love to hear about this.

Everything after he stood up and put her in a vicious choke hold is blurry madness, a heavy mixture of hate, lust and darkness, so much darkness.

Seeing the version of herself under Kylo he had projected into the bond had left her mouth dry. The feel of his actual body pinning hers to the floor, his sweet breath in her face and his thoughts of what he wanted to do to her had turned her entire body into a bundle of keen nerves. If he had acted out on his thoughts, she would’ve give him everything he wanted.

A thought that should have been more alarming to her.

He had surprised her when he returned only after a few moments, the blood washed away from his face. The wine she was slurping was rounding all her edges, relaxing her even with the Force roaring with dark energy around them. All she could compare it to was the thunder storm on Ach-To the night she left Luke to go to him. Right now, she was feeling that same heavy pressure in her chest and Kylo could feel it too. She said it out loud, quoting his words from their first meeting.

He was looking at her like a wild animal ready for attack. Instead of offering any wisdom befitting a Master, he stepped in so close to her and kissed her. This was by far the most amazing kiss she had ever experienced. His lips were exquisite, soft and luscious pressed to her own, his velvety tongue sweeping her own, his hands in her hair, then on her back and on her behind.  Everywhere he had touched her felt like he was setting her ablaze, his hands leaving trails of hot lava in their wake.

His wanton desire was drowning her senses. He had awoken in her needs she didn’t know she had, every touch scorching her body until she was completely inflamed.

He bit her, he licked her and explored her body so deftly like she would expect from a man of his experience. But no one had ever made her body react in this way. Her thighs were sticky with her arousal and the feel of him so large and hard on her back side made her brain short circuit. All her frenzied thoughts had focused into a single pressing one: she needed relief from what was building inside her and she needed it now. He told her in his low raspy voice that he wanted to fuck her, making the walls of her pussy clench and the muscles in her pelvis clench. She was at his mercy then, would’ve given him everything had he taken it.

She’s not sure what he had sensed from her that made him slow down, eventually coaxing her admission of her inexperience that had sent him running. But she had never felt so frustrated in her entire life than when he pushed away from her and rebuffed her.   _Seriously?_

Why did it matter so much to him that she was still a virgin, doesn’t everyone have to start somewhere? Was he suddenly turned off because of her lack of knowledge or was he attempting to be a gentleman? Because if that’s the case, that ship had sailed a long time ago! _What an idiot!_

She’s the idiot not him. Well…him too! A couple of idiots who, for whatever reason lost their minds completely and gave into their lust like a couple of hormonal teenagers making their already precarious living situation even more unstable.

Now that she’s back in her room, with a seemingly clear head (although she’s on her third glass of wine, so maybe _clear_ isn’t the right adjective) she knows he did the right thing and she’s grateful. Her virginity was the last possession she had that was truly her own. She was a vessel of the Force, to be used by it as it saw fit. Kylo Ren had breached her mind, took her memories and had broken her saber. She would like to hang on to her virginity for just a bit longer. She was ready to give that to Ben Solo after he had comforted her on Ach-To. There was nothing she was not ready to do for him at that point.

Suddenly, a terrifying thought occurs to her: what if all the emotions she had felt this afternoon were not hers? Could it be that his desires and darkness had permeated her when they touched, like they had during his interrogation?

No, it was all her, all of it.

Kylo Ren took what he wanted, and if he would’ve wanted her, she would be laying with him on the sitting room floor, their hunger for each other satiated.

What she had had experienced resulted from her unbridled lust for him. She had fed those feelings into the Force, feeling the darkness swell around them and in turn letting it flow through her, urging her to continue chasing that release.

Luke had accused her of opening herself up to the dark side for a pair of pretty eyes on Ach-To. Not only had she opened herself up to the dark for him, she had chased his darkness, nourished from it. Those pretty eyes will be the death of her one day. Maybe she had chosen Ben Solo on Ach-To, but Force help her, she wants Kylo Ren with every fiber of her being.

She needs to get to sleep though, she’s already spent so much time trying to figure out her feelings towards him and what transpired between them.

It’s impossible to go to sleep when all she feels are his hands and lips on every spot of her body he had touched. Unconsciously, her own fingers trail his as he had made his way from her navel down to the band of her pants and between her legs.

Her hand slips inside her pants, feeling her wetness and her pelvic muscles twitch with anticipation. she uses the same two fingers Kylo had to tease her slit, sliding them down her lips and back up to her clit. She is impatient though, slipping her fingers between her slicked folds, letting out a quiet moan.

She could picture his body pressing into her, his fingers inside her while pinning her against the table. That friction had been delicious and she wanted more. Her own fingers are sliding in and out of her soaking cunt, feeling her juices drenching her thighs and spilling down towards her ass. With the next thrust, her thumb makes its way to her swollen clit, spreading her slippery lips with her other hand. She rubs slow circles around her clit but picks up the pace, chasing release. Her entire soaking pussy is in her hand, pressure building rapidly towards her climax. She cums thinking of Kylo Ren’s lips on hers, imagining his hard body pushing mercilessly into hers, making her scream his name.

With his face firmly imprinted in her mind, she finally drifts off to sleep, her restless body finally quenched.  At least for tonight.

…

Kylo Ren is definitely not asleep. He’s very much awake, siting up half way out of his bed, contemplating running to her room, smashing her door in and finishing what he had started.

He was more or less asleep about half hour ago, but as his brain finally unwound sufficiently so he could get some semblance of rest, he felt such a wave of unexplained arousal it knocked the air from his lungs. He then was shocked to see the image of himself naked, on top of her. If that hadn’t been enough to make him insane with want, he could actually _feel_ how wet she was, how incredibly tight her little cunt felt around his fingers. Her fingers?

Then he understood what was going on. She was fucking herself thinking about _him_.

He felt her careening towards her orgasm, the bond so thick with the sensation, allowing him to feel every twitch and delicious muscle spasm until she finally came.

He had enough self-control left to close the bond on his end. He was not about to take himself in hand with her as an audience. Besides, as flattering and arousing he found her hankering for him, he could not risk the possibility of his own image conjured by her come across the bond. While he is aware of how vein he is, he is not about to masturbate to himself.

He wasn’t particularly keen on masturbation, he hadn’t had to do it since he was a teen, those needs always being catered to by one of Pimena’s “specialists”.

But dire circumstances ask for dire means, he’s so horny and hard right now that he only has two other alternatives – bash her door in and fuck her right where she is right now, which as enticing as the idea of it is, the consequences are just too much for him to contemplate right now. The other alternative is of course doing nothing, wait it out. Unlike the Jedi, Kylo Ren doesn’t do blue balls. So he takes himself in hand, making quick work of it.

Not a surprise, considering.

First thing they were doing tomorrow is teaching her how to defend her thoughts. He won’t make any mention of what he saw and felt, it would only embarrass her and split her focus. He should probably feel more ashamed of himself for not closing the bond as soon as he’d realized what was happening. Then again, considering the amount of self-restrain he had exercised earlier, what’s a little voyeurism?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There will be more plot, but I think the smut is here to stay. I honestly wanted to flush out their feelings on what had happened but got carried away into a different direction.   
> Thank you for reading!! As always, let me know what you think!


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This day went all kinds of side ways for these two and they have a guest!

He can feel the sun on his face again and decides this is really not a bad way to wake up.

The fluffy critters are back on his window sill, staring at him. He can’t remember because his attentions were completely focused on other matters last night, but had the little creeps watched him jerk off?

_Fucking troubling_.

He starts to get dressed. He had slept naked, too exhausted to put his sleep clothes back on. He didn’t own pajamas, he always slept in the nude but thought to maintain some semblance of modesty. That thought makes him chuckle out loud “guess that’s out the window now”.

He knows Rey is outside, tending to whatever it is that she does on a daily basis so he takes time to shower, have his kaf and even eat a few slices of toasted bread. He’s really over doing it with the bread but he hardly needs to worry about that right now. He will just indulge while he can.

He takes his seat at the table, his eyes briefly lingering over the spot where he had her pressed against the table. No, he cannot let himself get distracted like that again.

Just as he finishes his stray thoughts, he hears a loud boom and can feel the entire base shaking. _Are we being attacked?_

Who? And Why? The First Order had no knowledge of her whereabouts, neither Hux or Attari Ren had made any mention of a possible strike. Attari would’ve warned him with time to spare if that was the case. Bounty hunters don’t announce their arrival like that; they sneak in and take what they need.

The base continues to shake as the booming thuds keep coming. He’s already dressed with his outdoor gear, heading out the door when he hears it.

“Ben”

A whisper in their bond and then he feels suffocated with her terror and pain.

Then he sees the horrific sight in front of him and understands. The side of the mountain is tumbling down furiously as if shedding unwanted layers of snow, ice and rock. He’s seen a few avalanches on Starkiller but not as powerful as this one. There were no obstacles in its destructive path towards the valley below, no trees to break its furious advance.

And Rey is somewhere at the bottom of that covered pit, swept up and buried within seconds. He can feel her still alive, but for how long he can’t be sure.

He doesn’t hesitate. He starts running towards the area where he can feel her, turning on his comm-link.

“I need you on Hoth right away. Bring a med droid with you and don’t delay for any reason”

“Kylo, are you injured, are you being attacked?”

“No, but someone else is and time is of the essence”

“Understood”

_Hang on Rey, I’m coming just hang on._

He can feel that he’s getting close to where she is but can’t see through the cloud of powder and debris. Until, about 20 yards away he spots her vulptices desperately digging and howling.

_Good job you little fuckers!_

He admires the crystal critters’ perseverance and loyalty to her. Was she their Master, their friend? Or is it that her power with the Force is so magnetic that all life is just drawn to her? He certainly is. He has to save her and he doesn’t know why. He’s never been one to respect life but he can feel the Force compelling him, solidifying his resolve to get her out.

He holds his breath and gathers all the Force around him, forming a shield around the area where she was buried to prevent any other projectiles or mounds of snow from making his job even harder. He has to remove the rubble carefully; she’s likely pinned under something and any kind of sudden movement could end up with her getting crushed.

He closes his eyes and raises both hands to hold the shield and begging the tedious process of digging her out. His lips are moving just slightly, only a few words whispered in prayer:

“The Force is with me and I am with the Force. The Force is with me and I am with the Force….”

…

Wyatt Ren has never been one to question his friend and Master when he gave an order. He packed a few things, the med droid Kylo had asked for and some rations and boarded his ship making his way to Hoth. He wasn’t on Bespin for very long, he hadn’t even had a chance to meet with General Carlissian yet.

The trip to Ilum was as brief as Kylo had predicted. There is not much left on the planet, mostly nomads. The Jedi temple is in ruins, any Jedi lore or artifacts remaining had long been scavenged. The Force is strong but quiet there, almost as if its hibernating with the rest of the ice planet.

The few drifters he’s met on his way to the temple had recoiled away from him in fear and refused to approach him before he could ask them any questions. Just as well, they didn’t know anything.

He doesn’t relish others fearing him. Yes, he’s a Dark Side user but he’s more than that, they all are. As Guardians, they all know how to wield the light and the dark sides of the Force. Kylo prefers the Dark exclusively because of the power it gives him. Wyatt prefers the Dark side because it had been his only source of help when he needed it the most, when he was all alone with his decisions.

He had thought many times of running away from his parents but he could not bring himself to leave the baby. She was defenseless and could not fend for herself, the degenerates that had raised them had no inkling on how to provide for her. He was her only hope.

When he was 13 however, he had an intuition that his parents were going to sell him to a slaver he had seen around their neighborhood. He understood later on that it was the Force warning him. The baby was almost 3 years old but he could not take her with him. As much as it pained him to leave his sister behind, he knew there was no way he could take care of them both on the run. He had never left Corelia before but he knew the life of a slave was not for him. He would not sacrifice himself for them.

He felt the darkness flow through him, taking his guilt and pain of leaving her, his hate for his parents, turning it all into a will of steel. The will to leave, to survive and find his way to Skywalker’s temple. He never thought of those worthless humans since the day he left their meager home. But he thought of his sister every day. He knew she was alive, he felt it in the Force but where she was or how her life had turned out was a mystery to him.

He wondered from time to time if she thought of him too, if she had tried to look for him as he had, or if she even remembers him at all. Would she understand his choices or would she condemn him for being a Knight of Ren and fear him like everyone else did?

He always tortured himself with these thoughts, his anguish about her always tipping the scales of the Force to the Dark. He knows in his heart they will find each other. He had promised her. He had made the same promise to himself.

He’s jolted out of his thoughts as his transport breaks Hoth’s atmosphere. He feels the Force all around him, roaring with energy, light and dark swirling, crashing into each other, stifling like the few seconds before the first lightning strikes during a raging summer storm.

_What is going on!_

There is something else too; he’s never been on this planet, in this system but there is a familiarity about it that is unsettling. Is he picking it up from Kylo? His Master is in agony, Wyatt can now feel his Force signature frenzied with energy, almost desperate with a sense of urgency.

He lands his own Upsilon next to Kylo’s and lowers the ramp, double sided saber lit and ready to face whatever was bringing his Master this distress.

He rushes down to what appears to have been a recent avalanche, all senses keen on the fight to come. Seeing Kylo with his eyes closed, slowly moving debris around behind a Force shield tells him that he had completely misjudged what was waiting for him.

“Master?”

Kylo opens his eyes and looks at him with so much intensity it sends a shiver down his back.

“Put your weapon away Wyatt and help me dig! She’s buried under this spot and I don’t know how much more time we have to get her out, it’s already been 45 minutes.”

Wyatt obeys immediately, skillfully taking over the Force shield from Kylo so he could concentrate on tunneling for _her._

_Her? The time for questions is not now_. He admonishes himself.

He directs some of his power to Kylo, who takes it greedily to strengthen him and quicken his efforts. Combining their power brings them into synch, both working at the same pace, their minds sharply focused, their bodies reenergized as a consequence.

They work like this for another ten minutes. Kylo is on his knees in the snow while Wyatt stands with his eyes closed, both hands in the air shielding them. Kylo breaks away from him as he’s found what he had been digging for: a slab of ice, resting on a few boulders and mounds of snow just enough to crush whoever was trapped under it.

Wyatt manipulates the Force around him once again to lift the slab of ice gently and toss it out of their way as Kylo reaches to _her._

“Rey?”

“The Jedi!” Wyatt gasps. Again, so very unexpected. He’s rarely so thrown; he usually has an excellent intuition about anything he gets into.

Kylo is on his knees, assessing the girl. Hope and fear are rolling off him in equal amounts, out of control, suffocating the force around them.

She’s not breathing but she’s alive. For now.

Wyatt clears a perimeter around them so Kylo can lay her flat on her back. She is bleeding from a few places. Where her thigh should be, Wyatt sees a puddle of blood. Her femur is clean fractured, the top side of it sticking out thorough her snow pants. She’s also bleeding from a large open gash on the side of her head. Her face is covered in scratches and he assumes her body is full of bruises under her snow clothes.

_What are her feet attached to?_ He looks at her board with curiosity.

Kylo’s focus is on the girl alone. She’s still not breathing and her light begins to fade.

“NO! We’re not done yet Rey!”

He stabilizes her head using the Force and breathes into her, filling her lungs and waits. Nothing.

He does it again, over and over again.

Still nothing.

“Breathe dam it!!!!”

Wyatt can feel how unbalanced his friend is, he’s filled with fear and the dark is chocking the light in the Force. Saving someone’s life is not a dark side ability. He needs to intervene if they have any chance of saving her.

“I am one with the Force, the Force is with me. I do not fear. All is as the Force wills it. I’m with the Force, the Force is with me” Wyatt chants.

Kylo seems to be out of his panic induced trance. He begins reciting the words along with Wyatt. Both closing their eyes and praying while Kylo continues to breathe for her.

Finally, after what feels like hours, she gasps for air. Wyatt can see her chest rising and falling on their own and he thanks the Force for helping them, once again.

“We need to get her inside now, before hypothermia sets in” Wyatt says. But his Master is a step of him already. He’s picked her up in his arms and using the Force to keep her leg from further damage, he begins the trek up the hill. It takes a lot longer carrying another person up the hill.

“Is the Resistance waiting for us in that base Kylo?” he asks clutching at his saber.

“No. It’s just us two”

It takes them close to 15 minutes to get up to the base. Wyatt makes a quick detour to his ship to bring the med droid and the emergency kits inside the base.

He finds Kylo in the kitchen, where he had laid the girl on the table.

“Before the droid gets to her, we need to set that femur” his friend says without looking at him. Kylo is appraising the break and how best to go about setting it so it can heal properly. This is not something bacta can fix.

Kylo finds a pair of scissors in one of the emergency kits and cuts the leg of her snow pants and the leggings underneath.

“Wyatt, I need you to hold her in place while I do this”

The Knight nods obediently and moves to her side, gently holding her still with the Force. Kylo moves his hands to her slender thigh and with a push pull motion and gruesome sound, the bone is set. The girl’s brow is beaded with sweat now, but that is the only reaction.

Wyatt hands Kylo the graphite brace from the kit to stabilize her leg. He then sits down at the table while Kylo takes the girl to her room for the droid to stitch, patch and cover her in bacta patches.

While he waits for his friend to return, Wyatt takes inventory of his surroundings. He spots the kaf maker and is instantly overjoyed. Kaf is his biggest weakness, he’s truly addicted to it. He makes a fresh pot and then spots the books unceremoniously tossed on the floor.

_Are those the…_

“The Jedi texts, yes” Kylo answers his thoughts as he enters the room. Wyatt pours him a cup of kaf and sits down across from him, waiting patiently.

“Thank you”

“Of course!” answers Wyatt. “It is my duty to come whenever you need my help”

“It’s not just about duty. Not entirely. Wyatt, you and the other Knights are the only family I have. I don’t say it as much as I should, but your loyalty and friendship is everything. I lost myself today, and you were there to bring me back from the abyss”.

Wyatt is stunned into silence. He can’t remember Kylo ever being so sentimental towards them.

“I assume you have some questions?”

“Only a few hundred but let’s start with these books and how you got your hands on them. We can discuss you casually hanging out with the pretty last Jedi in an old rebellion base after”

“You think she’s pretty?”

“She is. Stop stalling Kylo. You’re lucky I was on Bespin already, the next closest planet to here is Naboo” Wyatt howls with laughter.

“Auburn would’ve killed us both before I even got a chance to explain everything” Kylo smirks thinking about his wayward Knight.

“What is happening to the Force? I could feel it from the ship, as soon as I broke atmo, it’s chaotic. I’ve never seen it behave like this.”

“I know, but I have no explanation for it Wyatt”

“Ok well, maybe start with things you _can_ explain”

“First off, I should let you know that I haven’t’ been completely lying to you guys this whole time. I knew she had the Jedi texts before I got here.”

“How?”

“It’s such a complicated long story, I don’t know where to start my friend.”

“We have all the time in the world. Maybe start with something simple, like her real role in Snoke’s demise and then we can move to more complicated things, like what you’re going to do about being in love with her”

Kylo just stares at him, this time he is the one completely stunned into silence.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!   
> I love the Knights of Ren and I am hoping to provide more and more background for them as the story goes, giving them some time in the spot light.   
> So I live in Canada, in Alberta. If you don't know where that is, that's ok! all you need to know is it's Prairie and mountains and so, so so much snow. That's one of the reasons why I picked Hoth for the first part of the story as the focus of the action because I get "inspired" by the constant misery of snow. Even today, right now April 6th, there's a semi-blizzard and -10 degrees Celsius.   
> So what's there to do in good ol' Alberta when the air outside hurts your face? Write fiction, drink coffee and listen to the Weekend. (Ok, that's just me probably). Here's the point of this seemingly random unrelated note to the story:  
> The Weekend has a song featuring Lana Del Rey called "Prisoner". Other than it being an amazing listen, I feel the song profoundly represents how I think Ben Solo feels at this point:
> 
> "I'm a prisoner to my addiction  
> I'm addicted to a life that's so empty and so cold  
> I'm a prisoner to my decisions"
> 
> Thank you for reading and have a fabulous weekend!!!!


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Three's company! This is a bit of a transitional chapter, but it will set up plot to come!

“What did you just say?”

Wyatt’s only response is an arched eyebrow.

“I am NOT in love”

“No? Do you give mouth to mouth resuscitation to all sworn enemies of the First Order?”

“I couldn’t just do nothing”

“Right. Because you don’t feel anything for her”

“I don’t!”

“Kylo, I would tell you to search your feelings but I don’t need to. I can see it through your actions; you’ve changed”

“You’re wrong. Your conclusion is based on incomplete information”

“Ok so fill me in. What happened to your nose?”

“Oh that..,she punched me”

A howl of laughter bursts out of Wyatt’s chest “She loves you back!”

That gets him a Force smack to the back of his head.

“Tell me how we got here. I want to be of actual help but I need to know the truth”

Kylo takes a deep breath in and with his long exhale he begins.

He tells Wyatt everything. From sensing her awakening to the Force, as they all had up until the moment he found them at the base of the mountain.

He doesn’t leave out any details, even ones that embarrass him thoroughly.

Wyatt has listened patiently, not interrupting with his words or thoughts, but his emotions were a flurry of curiosity, surprise and a significant amount of astonishment.

When Kylo is finally done, Wyatt spends a few moments in complete serious silence, as if contemplating everything he has just heard. “You know, I always assumed Skywalker was a huge cock block”

This makes Kylo laugh out loud.

“Why am I not surprised that’s the part of the whole story that you decided to focus on?”

Wyatt is laughing with so much gusto; it’s making his eyes water. “I would’ve loved to have seen his face though! Just imagine, ol’ Master prim and proper finding his sweet pretty Jedi about to be corrupted in the middle of the night by Kylo Ren! I’m almost astounded he didn’t drop dead on the spot.”

“I wasn’t about to corrupt her Wyatt, we just touched hands for fucks sakes. She was so sad; I could feel it all through the bond. I was just trying to comfort her, listen to her, help her make sense of what she saw. All the things he couldn’t be bothered to do as a teacher”

“I see, you did all that because you want to be her _teacher_ ”

“Can you focus? This is a real problem and I need your help”

“I’m sorry Master, that was a lot of information you shared with me and I’m trying to process all of it. It does seem to me though that the Force wants you together. It literally _bound_ you to her. The more you both try to resist it, the stronger it seems to get. Maybe the key is to stop fighting it. You both let go, follow your feelings and see what It wants from you”

“Do you really believe that the Force wants us to fuck? Because that seems to be the end point the Force or the bond or both were taking us to yesterday”

“Well I can’t totally speak for the Force, but you two certainly seem to”

“She’s a virgin Wyatt. She doesn’t know what she wants, she’s influenced by everything I’m putting out in the bond. If I took advantage, I would feel like the biggest asshole in the galaxy”

“With all due respect, that’s ridiculous. Clearly she was into it as much as you. Have you considered talking to her, maybe see how she feels about everything? Seems like you’re assuming an awful lot”

“Never really had the time to talk feels as I was keeping her from getting crushed to death. Since when do you know so much about … _this?”_

“You forget I lived for a long time with three women. Two of whom are in a relationship and one that has a lot of …umm…experience?”

“Right. Those two are the worst kept secret of the Knights of Ren.” Kylo smiles and changes the subject.

“Will you stay here for a few days to give me a hand with the texts until her health stabilizes? I’m very tempted to pack her and her wildlife and leave this fucking nightmare of a planet, but that would be highly unadvisable”

“I was already planning on it. But now that you brought it up, what are those things?” Wyatt nods over to the vulptices hovering around Rey’s door.

“I think they’re her pets? I didn’t really ask her, one of the little assholes bit me the second I got here so there’s a mutual dislike. But I could not had found her without them, they sensed where she was under the snow.”

“They’re sort of cute”

“Yah, they grow on you. But watch yourself, I don’t fully trust them”

Wyatt laughs another full bellied laugh “Maybe she trained them to attack you”

Kylo smiles but before he has a chance to reply, the med droid walks in

“Sir. The patient is stable but will need additional recovery time before she can function optimally. Six stitches in her scalp, fifteen to close up the femoral displacement, three broken ribs and a concussion that will have to be monitored in the next 24 hours”

“Pretty good considering the amount of time she’s already spent with you” Wyatt jokes. His high spirits are one of his characteristics Kylo admires so much.

“There’s a bacta tank somewhere on this base, I remember hearing stories of how Luke had to spend a significant amount of time immersed in one after Han found him almost frozen. It’s probably about a gazillion years old, but it’ll do. She needs bacta treatment or her healing could take weeks and I just don’t have that kind of time”

“Sure, no problem”

_Yah dude, zero feelings for the Jedi. As he practically skips over the get her naked…_

Kylo turns around and glares.

“That’s something I should’ve mentioned to you before…guard your thoughts. I don’t know if it’s the way the Force is behaving or if it’s this place or if it’s us being in such close quarters, but all our thoughts project. I thought it was just her an I but I clearly heard you being a dick just now so that means we’re all in the same boat”

He then enters her room, where she is lying still on her bed, her chest rising and falling with her ragged breath. He gently removes what is left of her pants and tights after he’s cut her out of them. He then takes her shirt off, softly so he doesn’t disturb her broken ribs. He can’t help being appreciative of her entire body, his eyes travel over her long slender thighs, her toned stomach, her supple breasts covered by her undergarments, her luscious pink lips and he unconsciously touches her face with the pads of his fingers, gently removing a few strands of hair that were sticking to her forehead from her perspiration.

_You’re going to be the fucking death of me kid._

He slips his left arm under her knees and his other arm under her shoulder blades, lifting her up. He’s surprised at how light she is. She’s tall for a girl, she’s taller than Alix and Auburn Ren, but she’s small. His open palm covers almost the entirety of her back. He carries her over to the med bay, where Wyatt has prepped the bacta tank for her.

“The patient requires at a minimum nine hours of bacta therapy to return all body function to optima levels” the med droid chirps.

Kylo gently places her in the jelly, where the droid takes over.

“Sleep?” Wyatt asks yawning

“Wine first?” Kylo answers and Wyatt lights up.

…

She’s back in the Ach-To cave, still trapped in the mirror, looking at the foggy reflection. The cave is colder than she remembers, she can see her breath on every exhale, feel beads of sweat freezing on her face as her heart flutters in her chest.

Why is she back here?

There are no questions left to ask the mirror. She doesn’t seek answers about the people who gave her up anymore. And yet, the mirror begins to shift as it had done before and Rey can’t help placing her palms to it.

The same two unidentifiable shadows begin their slow walk towards her. She knows what to expect now and she is no longer panting with anticipation. It will only be her on the other side of that mirror. Since that moment, she had decided she will not look back again. The way Kylo had confirmed the truth of her parentage was painful and harsh, he had tried to manipulate her pain to get what he wanted out of her.

But that truth was something she already knew. That had been the turning point of her life; Rey was the only one responsible for her life, her choices no longer being a mere reflection of other’s decisions; she was done playing the role of the by-stander in her own life.

_Tell me, why am I here again? What do you want from me?_

The two figures are still moving towards her, she begins to make out the outlines of their clothing, their hair. All black, all shadow. She patiently waits as they become more clear and then she is stunned.

_What in the name of the Force!_

The figures standing across from her are Kylo Ren, wearing his mask and…Kylo Ren, not wearing his mask.

_What is this? I don’t understand!!!_

Both Kylos press their palms to each of hers. As she moves her palms across the surface of the mirror, the two figures move so they face each other but continuing to press one hand against hers.

“Search your feelings” A voice whispers but she doesn’t recognize it. She’s heard it before, on Takodana, in Maz’s castle.

“All is as the Force wills it”

The she wakes up brusquely.  _What was that! Where am I?_

She appears to be suspended in a sticky, gelatinous substance. A bacta tank? Her memory then triggers; flashes of an unstoppable wave of snow and rocks, sweeping her off her board, burying her and sealing her in her frozen grave before she had the chance to react. Her last thought had been of _him_ and she had called out his name through the bond.

Did he save her?

She could not remember anything concrete, just a feeling of complete peace around her, inside her. Is that what dying would be like?

She can’t feel her injuries, but likely there were a bunch, probably some new scars. She would have to catalog everything once she was out of this vessel.

The med droid beeps and informs her that her treatment is complete. Had the resistance left a med droid behind for her?

She waits until the tubes and wires are removed from her body and then gets herself out of the tank, suddenly very aware she is only wearing underwear and is soaking wet. The droid hands her a towel to dry off but she is freezing.

 She makes her way to the ‘fresher and hops in the shower without waiting for it to warm up. She traces the scar on her thigh which, even with the bacta treatment, is still pink and angry looking. _Must’ve been a biggie!_

Her hair is disgusting, sticky and crunchy from the bacta, matted in places with blood (explains her head ache). She will worry about untangling it after she gets warm and clean. She also wonders how long she’s been out of it.

Kylo Ren saved her life. That was something she couldn’t stop thinking about since she regained consciousness. He trenched to find her in the snow, he had tended to her injuries dutifully, but why? Pragmatically, her death would be the solution to all his problems. If she’s not alive any more, there is no bond or bond-related issues to worry about. Letting her die was the easy, obvious solution so why hadn’t he taken it?

The memory of his lips on hers comes to the forefront of her mind. But not in the context of that night; he was sealing her lips with his and breathing air into her lungs. So he had brought her back from the dead.

She turns off the water, gets out of the shower and gets dressed. She has so many questions that are burning her. She dons fresh underthings and decides she will not think about how he had obviously undressed her. She pulls up a pair of grey wool leggings and a long sleeve, form fitting white tunic with a square neckline. She finds her boots next to her bed and heads to the kitchen.

She can smell fresh kaf and she needs it. Now!

 _There’s someone else here._ she stops in her tracks and regrets having not donned her hip blaster. She was getting too comfortable with Kylo.

When she enters the kitchen she’s met with two pairs of eyes; the pretty dark ones she knows so well and an icy blue pair.

“You’ve made a quick recovery all things considered” Kylo asks as he stands up to look her over “How are you feeling?”

The other man stands up as well, walking over to pour her a cup of the brown liquid she’d been craving.

She doesn’t know how to react to Kylo’s genuine concern for her and she is so overwhelmed by everything that had happened, that she just reacts without thinking. She leans into Kylo’s chest and wraps her arms around him in a tight hug.

“Thank you” she whispers as she sheds a few tears.

Kylo seemed taken by surprise, but he returns her embrace, at first awkwardly placing his arms around her shoulders, but then sinking into it, squeezing her to his chest, his right hand stroking the back of her head gently.

The other man clears his throat as he approaches them, as if breaking the spell.

“We’re even now Rey from Jakku” Kylo says “This is Wyatt. Wyatt Ren”

“As in…the Knights of Ren?” there’s a note of apprehension in her voice that doesn’t go unnoticed.

“Yes. Wyatt was stationed relatively close by and he helped me dig you out. I couldn’t have done it without him”

She looks at the blonde man more diligently. He’s about Kylo’s height and built, but he has a much softer face. Even with the red beard he’s sporting, his features are youthful. She thinks his eyes are the most beautiful blue colour she has ever seen. This man was beautiful, not at all what she had imagined the fearsome Knights of Ren to be under their masks. She had only seen them in a Force vision and the rest of her opinions on the subject had been shaped by stories and gossip.

Then again, Kylo Ren might be the most beautiful human she has ever met, so in a way it makes sense he would be surrounded by peers of similar appearance. Maybe it’s the dark side at work, the darker the human, the more outwardly beautiful they are, to better lure in their unsuspecting prey. _That’s bullshit, Snoke was the evilest being I’d ever known and he was disgusting. That hair cut thought…yikes Wyatt Ren._

Kylo bellows out a laugh and Wyatt blushes.

“What did I tell you!”

“Fine, I will just shave it all off” Wyatt grumbles. “But you shouldn’t be one to talk about hair style Jedi!”

Rey is mortified. Have they heard all her thoughts?

“Yes, and you are continuing to project so once you eat, the first thing we’re doing is teaching you how to shield your thoughts. In the meantime, can you be nice? At least to Wyatt?”

“I’m so sorry, I’m such an ass! Thank you Wyatt. Thank you both for saving me”.

“Wyatt Ren is going to stay a few days and help us with the texts”

“Can’t hurt!” Rey responds enthusiastically, the moment of embarrassment forgotten. “Before we get into anything in here though, there are some maintenance issues I have to tend to outside. That avalanche took out the solar panels; we are now only powered by the transformers and they need to be cleared of snow daily or we’ll be in a lot of trouble.”

“I’ll do it” answered Kylo to her disbelief. “I have to check in with the First Order and some other business to attend to on my ship, so I can do that today. Just because the bacta healed you, it doesn’t mean you’re completely free and clear. You have a concussion that needs to be monitored”

He then leaves her with Wyatt Ren.

“Hungry?”

“Fuck yah, I could eat roasted bantha at this point” she answers as the Knight laughs.

So, a beautiful man is cooking her breakfast while another beautiful man is outside taking care of her chores. If it wasn’t for one of them being an extremely dangerous dark-sider and a Knight of Ren, and the other being Kylo fucking Ren, the Supreme Leader of the First Order, she would think this is a very good dream. Just when she thought her life couldn’t possibly get more fucked up than it already was, the Force finds a new and fun way for her to experience extreme discomfort.

“We really do need to teach you how to guard your thoughts little Jedi” Wyatt laughs as he continues cooking her breakfast.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you guys are awesome for reading and sticking with the story! thank you!!


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mornings on Hoth are always interesting!

These entire past 24 hours have been some of the strangest and confusing for Wyatt Ren.

Certainly not even close to what he had prepared himself to face when his Master had given him the order to come to Hoth.

Kylo Ren is bound by the Force to the Jedi. If that alone wasn’t inconvenient, Wyatt is certain beyond any doubt that his lifelong friend is desperately in love with this whips of a girl. Having never experienced these types of intense feelings towards a woman makes him less of an expert in the matter; however, he has spent a large part of his life with Alix and C’mmaron Ren who are a couple very much in love, in spite of their denial.

A human afflicted with such intense infatuation can be easily identified if observed carefully. Ever the strong proponent of logical argument, Wyatt has mentally compiled a list of all the evidence he’s gathered to present to Kylo, after he’s denied his feelings for Rey the Jedi.

First of all, Kylo hadn’t killed the girl yet, which makes her a part of an elite group.

Second, they are both attracted to each other physically to the point where their sexual energy literally bursts into the Force, making it almost unstable. As far as Wyatt can remember, Kylo Ren has never even as much as contemplated the idea of a romantic relationship. Sexually speaking he was experienced, as all of them were, courtesy of the First Order’s policies on the matter, but the emotional entanglement resulting from a constant physical relationship with another person is a foreign concept to them. Kylo’s refusal to give in to his desire for the girl is inexplicable; all he’s achieved with this denial was to ensure the whole atmosphere on the base is charged with sexual tension.

Third, and the most telling sign of Kylo’s feelings for Rey, are the changes in his personality. Aside from him saving her from certain death with his own hands and lungs, he’s showing a level of care for her that he’s never showed to another person before. Not even to his brothers and sisters. Kylo had lied to the Knights of Ren about her, to protect her and likely to delay explaining his own feelings toward her.

Wyatt knows Kylo had put aside his own pride and had left himself completely vulnerable to judgment when he had reached out for help. He put her needs above his own, fully prepared to accept the consequences if that meant she would be saved.

Kylo will tell the rest of the Knights in his own time, but he will not be able to keep her a secret any more. While Wyatt has no inkling about how any of this will go from here, he knows that the Jedi Rey has a big part to play in their mission. Nothing happens by accident and her life is so intertwined with Kylo’s already, there is no way to dismiss any of this as just coincidence.

He’s thinking while watching Rey finish the breakfast he’s cooked her. Pretty basic, scrambled protein and toasted bread. The way her eyes sparkle with delight at the modest spread he’s laid out for her is in direct contradiction to the way she’s shoveling food into her face like a starved rancor. It is very endearing.

She’s made zero attempts at guarding her thoughts from him. Although at this moment all she is thinking about is how much she loves the food he’s made her and the kaf she’s drinking. There’s something comforting about being around someone able to enjoy something so simple with such wholesomeness. The Knights of Ren are balanced beings (or try to be most of the time), but all are weighed down with so many emotions, so much responsibility, so much sense of duty. He’s never felt how heavy his every day emotions were until now. Rey’s mere presence in the Force is soothing, her contentment is infectious.  

“Thank you!” she smiles at him, mouth still full of food.

She finishes her last few bites and gets up to help him clean up.

Wyatt can’t remember hearing those two words as much as he has since he’s been here, from both Kylo Ren and the little Jedi. He doesn’t hate it. Feeling appreciated for anything is not a luxury afforded to the Knights of Ren often, all they do is encompassed under the definition of duty.

They wash the dishes and clean the kitchen side by side, in comfortable silence, then sit down at the table with their kaf refills. The girl might love the stuff almost as much as he does.

His level of comfort around her is puzzling. He should hate her; for all intents and purposes, she is his enemy. She’s the last trained - al be it somewhat trained – Jedi. An obstacle in the way of the Force achieving balance, the last remainder of an ancient flawed religion that he and his fellow Guardians have vowed to destroy in order to restore that balance.

Just like Kylo Ren, Wyatt knows he will never be able to hurt this girl and will not hesitate to protect and defend her if she needed it. The Force compels him and even if he doesn’t understand, he knows not to question it.

“So, Wyatt. What do you make of all of this” she says and her arms flail about as if to encompass the entire frozen planet.

 “It certainly is extraordinary. Everything my Master has told me about your bond is unlike anything I’ve ever heard manifested in the Force”

“He makes you call him _Master_?” she furrows her brows with sarcasm.

“He doesn’t _make_ us” Wyatt answers, somewhat rattled at her impertinence. “He IS our Master. Ever since we left the Jedi Temple, he has been our brother, our protector and our teacher. His strength with the Force is unmatched. Well…maybe until now”

“Aren’t all the Knights of Ren strong with the Force?”

“We are but had to work hard to get here. Kylo’s abilities were natural. With his guidance we have all honed our capabilities but none of us are as powerful as him. Until you.”

“Everything I know I learned from him” Rey answers without looking up from her cup.

“He’s told me about how you were able to appropriate his knowledge instantly after you touched on Starkiller. That on its own is extraordinary.”

“Is that how you guys communicate with each other?” she asks with a slurp.

Wyatt smiles as he’s looking ahead of him. He feels a bit ridiculous that he’s sitting next to her instead of across from her. Not very conducive for conversation.

“I wish it were that easy! That would’ve saved us years of intense, painful work. No Jedi Rey, the Force has chosen you both to bestow this gift upon.”

“It doesn’t feel like a gift most of the time. Bumping into the Supreme Leader while he’s at various stages of undress is not exactly ideal”

Wyatt laughs at that but doesn’t say anything about how he doesn’t totally believe she hates that as much as she claims.

“Will you spar with me?” that question causes him to gulp his coffee and turn his body partially towards her.

“Kylo tried to but that lasted about ten whole seconds before we tried to tear each other to bits. I think there are still unresolved…umm…emotions from what happened on the Supremacy and Crait that surfaced.”

“You’ll have to ask Kylo. There can only be one Master to an apprentice”

“Ok, just so we are clear, hell will freeze over before I call Kylo Ren my Master. I have been owned my entire life until I left Jakku. No one gets to be my Master again!” she raises her hands and waves them around vigorously enough to knock over both their cups, their content covering the entire front of her formerly crisp white tunic.

“Fuck me! Why do people give me white things to wear? This is totally ruined!” she mutters a few more expletives under her breath as she stands to fully assess the damage. “I will be right back, I’m just going to change out of this. I can see how all black is a good option for you boys” she says as she trots out of the kitchen.

Wyatt smiles widely at that. No one has referred to him and Kylo as “boys” since they were about thirteen years old. That was the first time they both met Auburn Ren and expressed emphatic appreciation for her body’s generous shapeliness, in the typical manner of teenage boy: through leering, ogling and lude thoughts. Each of them had more than earned the back of the head smack they received.

Auburn had been his first kiss shortly after that meeting. He had been so infatuated with her at that age and couldn’t believe his good fortune when she had initiated the physical contact. Of course, nothing else came of it. Whatever the nature of her and Sunny’s relationship was, Wyatt respected it even if he hadn’t understood it and he never pursued her. The attraction faded over time, as all childhood crushes tend to and now Auburn is one of his close friends, a confidant and a sister.

He’s pulled out of his memories as he hears Rey’s footsteps and looks up as she enters the room. She’s wearing a dark green tunic with long sleeves and a cowl neck. The colour brings out the green in her hazel eyes, Wyatt observes.

“I need to ask you a favour before he comes back” she says and the tops of her cheek bones flush pink.

Wyatt arches an eyebrow with curiosity as she hands him an object.

“Please?”

He takes the comb and barks a full bellied laugh.

“Thank you. I can’t reach the back of my head and I fear one of the porgs will be tempted to set up shop in there”.

_Two days ago I was setting up the new headquarters of the First Order on Bespin, today I’m combing the little Jedi’s hair. Life is so strange._

Rey winces as he’s tugging at a particularly matted knot.

“How did you end up at Luke’s temple Wyatt, did you grown up with Kylo?”

“That is a really long story Jedi Rey and I don’t really want to get into it right now.”

“Just Rey”

He nods as he continues threading the comb through her long tangled mess of hair.

“I suppose we are enemies after all. Hair dressing and cooking services aside” she teases and he smiles.

He’s really liking how comfortable she is around him, that is not the usual reaction he gets from people outside his family of knights.

He feels her stiffen as Kylo enters the kitchen. Wyatt had been too busy hiding his thoughts from Rey to notice his Master approaching. Rey stiffens a bit, but it’s not from discomfort.

“Okay?!” is all Kylo says, obviously confused as to what he’s just walked in on.

_The fuck Wyatt? I was gone for maybe an hour. Why the fuck is she wearing a different shirt?_

Kylo had sent him that mental note. He was drowning in waves of jealousy.

_Seriously? She spilled kaf all over herself. She’s a really messy eater as you well know._

“You said to be nice” Rey answers him.

“Wyatt is helping me avoid having to shave my head. Don’t worry he’s still all ‘Knight of Renny’ and mean, I didn’t turn him while you were gone” she laughs. She used air quotes which annoys Kylo, evidenced by his eye roll as he passes them on the way to more kaf.

Wyatt decides he’s going to finish what he started while Kylo sulks and deals with his bout of irrational jealously.

As he sits down across from them and takes a sip, Rey turns and asks “Can Wyatt spar with me?”

Kylo’s teeth are clenched so hard and he is chewing the inside of his lip.

“Why, so you can break his nose too?” he spits out.

“Ben you can teach me everything else, but we clearly can’t spar or do anything remotely resembling hand to hand contact without tearing each other to bits. Please?” she whispers and Wyatt can feel Kylo’s resolve melt away and give in to her.

“Fine. But the med droid has to clear you from your concussion symptoms first”

_Wow she is powerful indeed. Has you wrapped right around her little finger._

_Fuck off. You’ve been around her for a day and she’s got you braiding her hair. She’s just really good at getting what she wants._

_Sure. Ben._

Wyatt smirks at Kylo.  Rey hadn’t heard their protected mental exchange and she can’t see their faces. Kylo is furious and also …blushing?

“Just so you both know, there won’t be any of this whole ‘Master’ bullshit flying around and don’t think if you teach me that you can tell me what to do outside of that. I’ve been taking care of me for the last 22 years and that’s worked out great.”

“Other than the small matter of you getting trapped at the bottom of an avalanche yesterday” Kylo replies to her with an even tone of voice.

“Yup, other than that” she smiles widely.

“Good as new” announces Wyatt as he combs the last of her unruly tresses in place.

“Thank you!” she squeaks and turns around to hug him.

The contact of her cheek against his feels like they were struck by lightning.  A jolt of electricity runs through them both, the impact throwing each of them clear across opposite sides of the room.

“What the fuck was that?” Kylo stands unsure of what he’s witnessed.

He runs to Rey, who is laying on the floor with her eyes closed, completely unconscious. Kylo lifts her head in his lap, gently caressing her cheeks, moving her hair off her face. “Rey?”

“Shit, she’s passed out, I think she bumped her head again. Wyatt, what the hell did you do to her?”

A few silent seconds pass and Kylo looks in the direction of his friend, annoyed that he’s gotten no answers from him.  Wyatt Ren is kneeling on the floor, his body leaning forward into his clenched fists. When he lifts his head to look at his friend, he can only see her.

He hadn’t noticed the streams of hot tears that were pouring down his face and onto the floor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for coming back! I hope you're enjoying reading this story as much as I enjoy writing it! I really thought I was going to write something totally different but I kind of liked how the dynamics played out in the last chapter and wanted to stay with them a bit longer. Not to worry! Things ramp up with the next update! I have a full week of travelling for work so there might be more updates/biggest chapters next week!


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The day that never ends continues on Hoth.
> 
> A bit of a warning - there is a brief mention of child abuse in this chapter.

“You already know the truth. Whomever you’re waiting for on Jakku – they’re never coming back. But, there’s still someone who still could. The belonging you seek is not behind you. It is ahead”

She can hear Maz’ words but she can’t see her.

She’s in a different place now; she knows this place. The boy is sobbing endless hot tears and he’s squishing her little body to his chest. _Why is he so sad?_

The grownups are mean to him all the time, but he is sweet to her. He feeds her when her tummy grumbles, he tells her stories every night and lets her sleep in his bed when she’s afraid. He’s showed her amazing magic tricks, where he moves books and other things around the room just with a wave of his hand. He doesn’t do this often and the grownups don’t know about it; this is their secret.

He’s just tucked her under her blanky after he had given her a nice warm bath. He’d combed her hair into three little buns and took her little chubby hands into his own “Rey, my baby girl, you’re so smart and brave; I need you to listen carefully to me now ok?”

She had nodded at him. “Rey, I have to leave you for a while.”

“Why? Was I bad Bo? Take me with you!”

He pulls out of her hug gently, places his big hands on each side of her face “Rey, you didn’t do anything sweet baby. You are the best thing in my life, please never blame yourself for anything ok?”

“They why can’t I come with you?” she’s confused; she doesn’t want him to go but she wants him to be happy again.

“Where I’m going, it’s dangerous and I can’t protect you. I can’t keep you safe”

She looks at him, untucks herself from her blanket and reaches him for a hug. Her little arms are wrapped around his neck, her little soft cheek touching his. His arms are squeezed so tightly around her and she can feel his tears running down her back.

“Remember everything I taught you ok? You have to be brave now, do not let _them_ do anything to you!”

He had taught her to hide from the grown-ups when she could notice the sour smell and they were swaying while they walked. She had seen them like that many times; that’s when they were always mean to Bo, yelling at him, throwing things at him and a few times the man had hit him. They were scary when they were like that and Bo had taught her how to stay safe.

“I don’t want you to go Bo”

“I have to sweetheart. _They_ want to sell me to one of the bad men we saw the other day, I can’t be here for them to do that.” He squeezes her into another hug and whispers to her “I promise. I’ll come back for you sweetheart”.

“Please take me with you, I don’t want to be alone Bo” she’s sobbing into his shoulder, desperate to hold on to him.

“Shhh baby Rey, everything will be ok” he tucked her back under the cover, laying down next to her, holding her close to his chest, his big arms wrapped around her. He’s rocking her gently, she can feel her eyes dry and she starts drifting to sleep.

“I hope you’ll forgive me one day sweet sister. Please remember me” those were the last words he had ever said to her.

The next morning, she woke up all alone in the cold bed. She waited for him all day, she had looked for him everywhere in their tiny, dirty house. She had looked for him outside, even though she wasn’t allowed to get out by herself, but there was no one there to stop her. When the sun was starting to set, she had climbed up onto the window sill, waiting for him to come back, like he had promised.

Waking up alone and waiting for Bo had become her daily routine. She was left alone most of the time, the grownups didn’t pay much mind to her. She was hungry and filthy, but none of that compared to the pain she felt every night when she was climbing down from the window, realizing he wasn’t coming back. She had no one to hold her hand, no one to tell her stories, no one to wipe her tears away; she was all alone.

Days had turned to weeks, weeks had turned to years. Her routine had changed, she learned how to search for food, spending most of her day searching for little treasures and trinkets to entertain herself. Had he been real? Or was he just an imaginary friend, that she had conjured up to deal with her loneliness and left her as she grew older?

One thing was certain, the pain she had felt in the empty place he had left in her heart was real, the tears she had cried when he hadn’t come back were real.

Her eyes snap open, tears streaming down her cheeks. Kylo’s face is hovering close above hers, his eyes filled with concern. “Rey? Are you alright?”

She blinks tears out of her eyes and realizes she’s laying down on the kitchen floor, her head gently cradled by Kylo Ren’s hands, resting on his lap.

“Rey?” she hears Wyatt Ren’s voice and sits up. Kylo’s arm is wrapped around her, supporting her. He is being uncharacteristically nice.

She rubs the back of her head and flinches at the pain; she’d clearly smashed it on the floor and now sports a fairly decent size bump to go with all her previous injuries.

When she opens her eyes, she sees Wyatt crouching in front of her, his big red rimmed blue eyes staring into hers and it finally clicks for her: “It’s you! You were real!”

“Oh Rey!I…I don’t…I never.. I’m so sorry!” he can’t finish his sentence and the tears start flowing again.

“You’re my brother.” She says it, even though she can’t quite believe it.

She feels Kylo’s arm on her back, wondering if he had known and had chosen to not tell her.

“I didn’t” he answered her thoughts with a whisper.

“I’m so sorry Rey, I should not had left you with those fucking animals! If I had any inkling of what they were going to do to you, I would’ve taken you with me. Oh Force I should’ve taken you with me. I can’t believe it’s really you!” Wyatt is still crouching in front of her, his face is only inches away.

She has so many questions, she feels so many things now that her childhood memories have all flooded back to her. But instead of saying anything, she just leans into his arms and hugs him the way she had as an infant.

“I remember everything Bo”

They remain unmoved in their embrace for what feels like hours. Kylo hasn’t moved off the floor either, processing everything that has happened no doubt.

She had given up hope on finding her family when Kylo had confirmed for her what she had already known of her parents’ deaths. But she has a brother, a real brother, who had loved her, who had cared for her and had left her because their parents were going to sell him. Just like they had sold her when she was about five years old. She didn’t have any choice in the matter; unlike him, she hadn’t seen it coming, hadn’t been able to protect herself.

“Rey, I don’t expect you to forgive me, but I beg you to let me explain.”

“You don’t have to explain your choices Wyatt; you didn’t know the level of their depravity. You were a child yourself, it wasn’t fair to you to be responsible for another person”.

“You were my best friend, my only family, my sister. I should’ve protected you, I should’ve been by your side.”

“Everything happens for a reason. Everything is as the Force wills it. And our paths have crossed again, finally” she says as she leans back into Kylo’s arm, her back resting against his thigh.

“I will never leave you again, I promise you. And this is a promise I _will_ keep” Wyatt says as he’s still holding her slender hands in his own.

“I have some questions” she whispers.

“Of course you do! Please ask me anything, I won’t keep anything from you”

“Why didn’t you recognize me right away?”

“I always knew you were alive because I could feel you through the Force, but it was just an energy, never defined, never tied to a specific location.”

“She thought you were her imaginary friend, her memory of you was buried so deeply, it had never surfaced until you hugged.” Kylo chimes in, trying to be helpful. “Why did she call you Bo?” he seems just as curious about everything as she is. She supposes it makes sense, they’ve been friends for most of their lives and clearly this is something Wyatt has never shared with him.

“She couldn’t say my name, so she called me Bo, short for brother. Wyatt is a tough word for toddlers, even ones as smart as baby Rey” he smiles gently, his eyes sparkling with pride.

“Is…is Rey my real name?”

“Yes. I was the one who named you actually. When _they_ brought you home, you light up the entire house. Like a ray of sunshine. Those beasts didn’t deserve you.”

“They didn’t deserve either of us” she answered sadly. She thought she had waited all those years for them to come back, she had shed so many tears when she thought she would never see them again, but it was him. He was the one she was waiting for and it was his absence was what she had grieved.

“I looked everywhere for you after I left Luke’s temple but there was no sign of you. I tracked _them_ to Jakku but the trail ran completely dead. I thought I had lost you for good and I prayed that the Force was watching over you. I’m sorry Kylo, I just couldn’t tell you about her. I couldn’t tell anyone, I needed to be sure she would not be used as a weapon, to have someone hurt her to get to me, to get to you.”

“You mean Snoke.” Kylo says and Wyatt only nods his head in agreement.

Rey is feeling overwhelmed. Wyatt’s emotions are tumbling freely from him into the Force around them; his guilt and love for her are flowing in equal parts. She’s never felt that kind of unconditional love before; Finn was as close as she’s had to a brother, but this was so much more. Thinking about Finn brings her mind into focus; Finn, her friends, the Resistance! What will she tell them? What will she do?

“You’re one of the Knights of Ren Wyatt, you’ve chosen the Dark Side of the Force and you serve the First Order. How can you promise you won’t leave me?” she can feel her heart starting to break. She’s also become very aware that she is currently sitting very comfortably in Kylo Ren’s lap.

“We’re not what you think we are Rey” Kylo’s voice is quiet, almost choked.

She turns her hear to face him, without taking her hands out of Wyatts. “What are you talking about? You’re the fucking _Supreme Leader_ of the First Order. The Jedi killer! And my brother has dedicated his life to you.”

He’s looking at her with the same expression he had on Crait, the day she had saved his mother and the remainder of the resistance. He looks hurt.

‘Remember why you came here Kylo. We’re supposed to sever the bond between us, not become more entangled”

“A lot has changed since we got here”

“Rey please.” Wyatt tugs her hands and she faces him again. He looks like he’s in pain, and she hates herself that she’s causing him this anguish. “I know I don’t deserve you as a sister, I don’t deserve your friendship but you are my blood. I can’t let you go now that I found you. There has to be a way.” She can feel his determination.

“I can’t turn to the dark side, I can’t join the First Order”.

“I didn’t ask you to” answers Wyatt.

“The Knights of Ren are loyal to Kylo Ren, not the First Order. We are the Guardians of the Whills”

“But Kylo…Kylo Ren…he’s my enemy”

She doesn’t get to finish her sentence because Kylo shifts so he can slide from under her, stands up and leaves the room. Had she hurt him? Again?

She feels pangs of guilt at that thought. She had been so preoccupied with her flooding memories and her feelings revolving around her brother and their past that she had completely put aside everything that happened with Kylo the day before the avalanche. Yes, things were getting very complicated. not that her life was a walk in the park before any of this.

Wyatt stands and helps her up, still not letting go of her hands. “Rey, I know this situation is so convoluted. You should take some time to process everything if you need to. I don’t know what we’re going to do from here, but we can figure it out together. I know that I am never leaving your side from this moment on”.

He leans in and hugs her again to his chest, his chin resting on the top of her head. “Kylo’s told me everything that’s happened between the two of you”

“Everything?” she asks cringing at the idea of her brother knowing what had almost happened on this very table.

“Ugh. Yes. Please for the love of Force either let me teach you how to shield or reign in your thoughts about him. It was bad enough when I wasn’t aware you were my baby sister”.

She can feel her cheeks flush with embarrassment.

“ I think you should talk to him Rey. I know him, and you know a side of him that no one else has ever seen. He’s gentle with you, he cares for you like he does for all of us. Maybe more. And you care for him.”

“He wants me to join him, he asked me to rule by his side. I can’t do that! I didn’t then and I won’t now”

 “He made a mistake giving you an ultimatum like that, he knows that now. I can tell you what I told him Rey: the Force bound you together, the more you fight it, the more you fight your feelings for each other, the more It acts to bring you closer together. There won’t be anything in these books that will help you break the bond that the Force has forged.”

“So I can never see my friends again unless I expose them and put them in danger?” she says with sadness.

“Nothing is as black and white as you seem to think. The three of us will come up with a solution. I will not leave you. But I cannot leave the Knights of Ren either. Most importantly, I don’t think Kylo can leave you and I don’t believe he ever intended to, once he got here”.

It had never occurred to her to ask him when he got here what he was intending to do after they broke their bond; of course he wasn’t going to leave her. He had always intended to take her with him, hadn’t he?

“Rey, I can feel the dark and the light in you, each flows through you so easily, you take what you need from either of them but you don’t let yourself tip over to one side of the other. You’re the perfect vessel for the Force. You could be one of the Guardians.”

“You want me to become one of the Knights of Ren? To pledge my life to Kylo Ren? Wyatt I can’t”

“It would be an easy solution to everything wouldn’t it? No Rey, I think your purpose is bigger than the Knights of Ren. Whatever the Force has in plan for you both, is beyond my understanding. Only the two of you can figure it out. Together”

She takes a deep breath and looks at her brother. “I suppose we don’t need to figure this out right now then?”

“No we don’t” he takes her in for another quick hug.

…

Kylo has been sulking since he left them this morning. For someone who likes control and depends on routine to manage his life, this morning has been trying. Really, since he had stepped foot onto Hoth he’s had zero semblance of control.

Rey had woken up from her treatment sooner than he had anticipated, which meant they could get back to their task. But that’s not what happened. No, literally out of the blue, due to a Force vision, he finds out, at the same time as she does, that Wyatt Ren is her big brother.  

That revelation had left him so confused. He was upset that Wyatt had lied to him their entire life; but then again, he hadn’t been completely truthful about Rey to any of the Knights either. And he had a good reason behind it. Snoke would’ve hunted her down immediately, imprisoned her and used her as a pawn to use to further subjugate him.

What was really upsetting him was her pre-emptive refusal to join them again, because of him. Because she hates him and everything he stands for. He’s disappointed in himself more than anything else, he had allowed himself to be comfortable around her, he liked the way she had trusted him to be part of that moment, that she had sat so comfortably in his lap and let him touch her, let him comfort her. Only to pull it all away from him minutes later. He let her hurt him for the last time.

He’s indulged himself long enough. Kylo Ren doesn’t sulk. Well that’s bullshit! At any rate, he decides it’s time to get back to the task at hand. There was also the question of Wyatt, and what was he intending to do now that he was reunited with his sister. Kylo knows he had meant it when he promised Rey he wouldn’t leave her.

He gets up from his bed and heads back to the kitchen. He can smell supper. Whatever she’s cooking smells amazing!

He enters the kitchen and he sees she’s all alone.

“Where’s Wyatt?”

“He went to take a shower” she answers looking up at him.

“What are you making, it smells really good!”

“I hope so! It’s meat and mushroom pie. Although the meat is dried salted jerky…I think it will be good though”

“Where did you learn how to cook?” Force knows it wasn’t Leia Organa who taught her.

“My friend Rose is an excellent cook, she knows how to make a feast out of the most basic ingredients.”

He smiles at her and she turns around, trying to hide her rosy cheeks from him.

He’s forgotten all his griping about her when she takes out the fresh biscuits she’s just baked to go with the scrumptious pie he’s smelling. Is it really that easy to tame his resolve? He is a ridiculous male stereotype.

Kylo takes his seat on the banquette while Rey continues to piddle around the kitchen. He’s opened one of the books and is trying to read, but he is so distracted by her, his own emotions and of course, his grumbling stomach.

After a few minutes, Wyatt makes his way back into the room; he’s showered, changed and shaved his head!

“Wow, you finally fixed that ridiculous hair style you had.”

“This really does suit you better.” Ray added as she walks over with their dinner.

They all eat in silence, their hunger taking precedence over conversation. The food is delicious of course, Rey has proven to be an excellent cook.

Once dinner is done, Wyatt helps Rey with the dishes and Kylo pours each of them a generous mug of Corelian Red.

“So, what do we do now?” Rey asks as she sips.

“Let’s teach you how to shield your thoughts. That will make our temporary living situation a bit less awkward” Wyatt chimes in and Kylo could not agree more.

“I’m surprised Luke hasn’t taught you that, it’s a basic skill and one of the first things Jedi learn” Wyatt adds, prompting an eye roil from Rey.

“He didn’t teach me anything, I was with him for a few days and what he’s taught me hardly makes me a Jedi.”

“Ok ok, sorry I brought it up” Wyatt says and raises his hands in surrender.

“This is not difficult to learn Rey. You just have to focus on compartmentalizing your thoughts first and then raising barriers around those compartments. The final step is consciously focus on keeping everything locked away in those boxes”.

“Can you try it right now? You have to start somewhere.” Kylo adds.

He and Wyatt watch as Rey closes her eyes, takes in a deep breath and focuses on her thoughts. She’s thinking about what happened this morning, Wyatt combing her hair, the vision and the feelings she had experienced.

“OK good, now try to separate those thoughts into three different boxes”

Kylo can see her efforts. He can see her thoughts severing into three different strains, instead of one consistent stream of emotions. She really is an excellent student and a quick learner.

“Excellent!” he praises her sincerely. “Now, picture each of these thoughts as a box and take all three boxes and close their lids.”

This task takes her a few hours and he can feel her frustration when she doesn’t achieve her goal right away. “It’s ok Rey, relax and try again”. He continues to encourage her while Wyatt watches, equally impressed with his sister’s progress. Kylo can see pride in his eyes, the kind of pride a big brother offers generously to their siblings.

After a few attempts she does it and she is ecstatic when both Wyatt and Kylo attempt to prod her thoughts with no success.

“Well done little Jedi” Wyatt practically coos to her. Kylo has never seen him like this, he’s so happy. His light is so bright, his heart seems full and content.

Rey goes to pour more wine but when she gets to Wyatt’s cup, he covers it with his palm.

“I’m actually good for wine, I think I’m a bit tipsy and honestly I think I need to go sleep. It’s been a hell of a day and I haven’t had a full sleep since we left for Cantonica.

He leans in to give Rey a kiss on top of her head, nods his head to Kylo and leaves for his room. Rey was watching him leave, successfully shielding her thoughts from him.

She turns to face Kylo, picks up her glass and clinks his.

“To one hell of a day” she giggles and that makes him smile. Kylo feels fairly tipsy himself, but Rey seems to be game to keep going and he isn’t totally opposed to that.

A few more glasses later and they are both drunk. She’s smiling widely, her eyes sparkle brightly under half closed lids. Her hair is messy from her constantly ringing her fingers through it during their training but that only adds to her charm. She truly is beautiful.

“Thank you!” she giggles and he realizes he’s no longer keeping his thoughts to himself. _Oh fuck it._

“You don’t need me to tell you that Rey, you must know how gorgeous you are already.”

“Actually I don’t. Jakku was never the kind of place where compliments were given freely. Usually if someone flattered you, they wanted something. So, what is it that you want Kylo?”

This feels like a trap. He’s a smart man though, he can easily side step this land mine.

“I want you” _or just say the first fucking thing that comes to your mind, that works too. Idiot!_

“You mean you want me to join you? My brother wants me to join the Knights of Ren so he doesn’t have to choose between him and them. Is that what you want too?”

It had never occurred to him to ask her that. He hasn’t really thought of what comes next, he assumed they would break their bond and he would leave her here and never think of her again. _Idiot._

“I don’t know. I mean that I want to be with you, be around you. I don’t know in what capacity.”

“Well maybe you should figure that out?’

“Rey, how do you not know already that I’m such a fool for you? I don’t have the will to stay away from you any longer, I tried. I can’t” he sounds so pathetic. He’d like to blame the wine as he is as drunk as she seems to be but that’s a lie.

She hasn’t said anything, her eyes are focused on him intently, darting from one side of his face to the other.

“If that’s true, why did you walk away from me the other night?”

Her blunt question took him by surprise but he can’t stop himself from answering her with complete honesty.

“I had to. I didn’t want to take advantage of you. I know that I was projecting what I wanted into the Force and you were feeding off of it. I didn’t want to take advantage of you.”

“You’re such an idiot”. Well they were on the same page there, weren’t they?

“Excuse me?”

“First of all, why do you assume you have so much power over me, that I’m such a feeble minded nitwit that you can influence me to that extent? You’re really full of yourself!”

He opens his mouth to say something, but she continues. “I was fully aware of what was going on, what was about to happen. I was very present and maybe next time, your worship, you should ask me how I feel.”

She’s called him that before, and he will ignore tugging at that particular thread for now.

“Ok then, how _do_ you feel about all of that, everything that happened?” he pauses for a second but he can’t rein himself in. “How do you feel about me?”

“One of those is much easier to answer than the other”

“How is that possible? You have to feel _something_ about me if you think you want to fuck me? If you don’t, then that means I was right to pull away, that you were just projecting what I was pushing out into the Force. I need to know Rey.” _Stop.Talking. Fucking imbecile._

“I like you”

He doesn’t say anything, he just stares at her. _What the fuck does THAT mean?_

“I like you” she repeats as she stands up and walks over to him, standing between his long legs, eyes level with his.

She runs her fingers through his dark curls on both sides of his face, then traces his cheek bones with her thumbs. She has his face in her hands and he has never felt so vulnerable. She softly runs the pads of her fingers over his lips, pressing one harder so that his lips part and her thumb is in his mouth. He can’t hold back the moan he lets out.

Their eyes meet again, for a brief moment then she takes her thumb away from his lips and seals them with her own. She tastes like wine and something distinctly ‘Rey’, a taste he is hopelessly addicted to.

He fights his every instinct to dominate her and lets her take control. He’s hers to do with as she pleases.

She kisses him softly at first, exploring his lips with her but she picks up the pace immediately. Her kiss deepens, her soft velvety tongue parting his lips and massaging his tongue. Her hands are pulling his hair gently to her, almost like she was making sure he won’t move.

She then climbs into his lap without breaking the kiss and he knows she can feel how hard he is. She takes his bottom lip between her teeth and gently graze it, making him growl this time. She lets go and looks at him with an incredibly sensuous look on her face.

He can hear himself panting, just like she is, when she says “I want you too. Let’s go to my room. Now”

He is more than happy to oblige her, as he picks her up with her legs wrapped around his waist and carries her to her room, closing the door behind him.

Her head is nested on the crook of his neck and she is latched on to him, but she’s not really moving, her limbs feel heavy.

“Rey? Sweetheart?” no answer.

When he disentangles her legs from around his waist, he sees, to his immense chagrin, that she is completely passed out. He places her in her bed, removes her boots and covers her with her blanket. He leans over her and kisses her forehead before he heads out, but she grabs his wrist and pulls him down next to her.

“Stay” is all she says.

He’ll stay a little bit. Her bed is not much bigger than his, she pretty much has to lay on top of him for them to fit. But that’s fine with him. He will stay as long as she wants him to. He will do whatever she wants him to.

 _Fuck, how did this happen_? This is the last thought he has before he too falls asleep, his mind completely free of any thoughts other than how much he likes the delicious weight of her on top of him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys for reading and for leaving comments!  
> I hope this update wasn't too long. In the next few updates we'll catch up to the Resistance and the rest of the Knights but there will be more Kylo/Ben and Rey and now Rey's big brother Wyatt (yes if you guessed it early, and you were right!)
> 
> Wonder what his thoughts will be on how this night ended?


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I know I said we'd catch up with the resistance and the other KoR but I got carried away with this smutty piece of tasty Reyloness
> 
> so yes, there is smut, beware!

Rey’s mind is fuzzy at best; she’s in her bed but she can tell from the lack of light in her room that it’s not morning yet, _thank the Maker._

There was wine, she remembers that. There was also kissing. Incredible, toe curling, gut wrenching kissing! Kissing Kylo Ren when he initiated had been a surprise to her but last night she had initiated everything, her bravery fueled by the wine she kept pouring for them.

She wanted him and he seemed to reciprocate her feelings, he said as much. So then why then, is she back in her bed, unsatisfied and very much still a virgin? _Oh right. Shit._

As soon as he had lifted her from his lap, she had settled her head in the space between his neck and shoulder, where she could smell him, feel his soft hair on her face, listen to his heart beat and she had been so enthralled in all those sensations that she didn’t notice when she completely passed out.

Her train of thought is interrupted as she feels him stirring next to her. _He stayed!_

He’s not so much next to her as wrapped up around her; her body is squished between the wall and his chest, his left leg straddled between her own, his left arm draped around her while her head is nestled in the crook of his right shoulder. His head is resting the back of hers and she can feel his soft, steady breath in her hair. This is a new feeling for her, she’s never slept in the same bed with anyone. She doesn’t hate it.

 _“I’m such a fool for you”_ he had said to her and remembering those words made her shiver from head to toe. She’s convinced he’s wrong about that; she has always played the trusting fool in this _relationship_ they have and she’s letting those pretty eyes lure her down the same path that lead her to the Supremacy in the first place.

She could no longer fight her body’s visceral reaction to him, she’s certain of it as she can feel every cell in her body reacting to his proximity at the moment. He was touching most of her body and she still wanted more. She wanted all of him.

She didn’t know what that would mean in terms of who they were in real life to each other. It doesn't matter. She likes him; she cares about him and that was hard to explain. He was her enemy, the enemy of the resistance, the most feared and powerful man in the galaxy. This was the same man who had inadvertently reunited her with her brother, her only remaining family in the entire universe, the only person who had ever loved her. The man who had saved her from all but certain death, twice.

All of the sudden, a new thought takes roots in her mind, something very closely resembling an epiphany. Since she’s met him, she had always tried to distinguish between Kylo Ren and Ben Solo, one being the undisputed villain, the other, a sad, lonely soul like her.

Ben Solo had nurtured her and comforted her when she was going through one of the loneliest and anguishing moments of her life. Ben Solo understood her better than anyone else ever had, he was her confidant and her friend.

Kylo Ren had murdered Han Solo, he had maimed Finn, he had tortured Poe, he had chased her, kidnapped her and rooted mercilessly through her mind. Kylo Ren had fought back-to-back with her and killed Snoke to save her.

Kylo Ren had kissed her and she had kissed him back.

She finally understood what the second vision of the cave on Ach-To had meant to tell her: Kylo Ren and Ben Solo are two sides of one coin. The dark and the light inside one person, one could not be saved at the other’s expense. She could not care for one without the other. She had to accept them both, care for them both.

It was never about turning Ben Solo back to the light, it was never about making a choice between Ben and Kylo; it had always been about him understanding and accepting both sides of himself in equal measure. The Force wants her to understand this and help him reconcile Kylo and Ben's existence; that is how he will achieve balance, _that_ is how she will help him.

She can feel the Force around her hum with approval.

He stirs behind her and her mind goes completely blank when she can feel him hard against her bottom. She hadn’t even realized she was holding her breath when she lets out a long exhale and inquisitively rolls her hips into his groin. She doesn’t have a frame of reference, but he feels _large_ against her back side, large enough for her to question how him being inside her would even be remotely possible without excruciating pain.

“How long have you been awake” she asks as she feels him smile against her hair, no doubt having heard her thoughts just now.

“Not long, I felt the Force around us change” he answers with a gruff sleepy voice that makes her skin turn to goose bumps instantly. He strokes her arms gently with the hand that was laying on top of her, starting at her shoulder and ending at her stacked palms, intertwining his fingers with all of hers.

He softly kisses her hair, nuzzling until he finds the back of her neck, where his lips barely touch her skin, causing her to erupt in flames. She is instantly filled with a sense urgency, she needs this, him, right now!

“Rey, you’re still pretty drunk and have a concussion, are you in the best frame of mind to make decisions that have irreversible consequences? I don't want to hurt you".

All he’s done with his thoughtful apprehension is to further fan her flames. If he doesn’t do something soon, she will explode into millions of pieces, without a doubt.

She turns around to face him, her hand reaching down tentatively between them, slowly stroking his substantial erection through his pants and a soft gasp escapes him as his eyes scrunch closed.

He opens his eyes and looks at her, bringing his lips to hers and moving her hand away. Before she could say anything in protest, he whispers against her parted lips “No Rey, we’re doing this right. I’m going to take my time with you sweetheart, we have all night”

Her breath hitches as he presses his soft lips to hers, this time with more pressure. She can’t get enough of his lips and he parts her so his tongue can slip into her mouth, massaging her own. The kiss is so wet, so deep, she feels like she can’t breathe and it is the most intoxicating suffocation she has ever experienced.  

He slows his lips so he can move them, positioning himself on top of her with his elbows bent at her sides, his palms under her shoulder blades, sliding them down her back towards her waist. He’s straddling her thighs on his knees, careful to not squish her with his entire body weight while he continues to kiss her.

His luscious mouth moves from her lips to her throat, where she can feel his hot tongue slowly licking a trail of flames down to the collar of her tunic. He slides his hands from her back up her sides and brings up the entire tunic, slipping it over her head in one swift move. She reaches up to him, tugging at his sweater; she’s decided he needs to be a lot more naked immediately.

He sits back on his haunches and pulls it off tossing it somewhere on the ground, bending back over her. She pushes her foot into his chest and orders him “the undershirt too”. He smiles at her bold gesture but obliges immediately.

She’s seen him at this stage of undress a few times, but she can’t stop herself from gawking at his broad shoulders, his well-defined pecs, his protruding abdominal muscles. Her eyes linger at the ‘V’ shape of his hips, following it as it leads her sight down to his groin. He bends over to kiss her again, reaching his hands behind her shoulder blades and removing her bra with one swift move.

He takes a second to look at her naked breasts and hums a filthy sound in appreciation of what he sees, immediately ducking his head to pull one of her breasts almost entirely in his mouth, softly touching the other with his free hand. She can feel liquid heat pooling in her stomach, matching the heat and wetness she can feel on the inside of her thighs.

He eases her breast out of his mouth, flicking his tongue on her nipple, nipping it between his teeth, sucking and releasing it, then laving it with his tongue immediately. The mix of sensations is almost overwhelming, she can’t help the moan that slips from her parted lips and her hips buck into his stomach.

She feels his cock twitching against her thigh at that. She can feel how hard he is now, and somehow he got _bigger. Oh Force, how is this even going to work?_

He looks up at her; even with the dim light of the moon she can see his eyes are almost completely black, filled to the brim with lust, no doubt a mirror of her own. He pulls himself back up so he can kiss her and whispers against her lips again “don’t worry, I’ll take care of you. I promise”.

He crushes his mouth to hers and she can’t slow down. She can’t stop kissing him, pressing her body into his, she can’t get enough of how his naked chest feels against hers.

She holds her breath as he shifts his weight so he’s resting on his left side, his legs now between hers, spreading her thighs, his right hand reaching the band of her tights. He’s kissing the side of her neck as his hand slides under the garment, he reaches between her legs and cups her pussy over her panties.

“Oh Rey, you’re soaked” he grunts in as he nips her ear lobe. He continues to kiss her neck, trailing down to her breasts where he continues licking where he had just left off. She can hear herself moaning into his hair as he runs two fingers up and down her slit, teasing her mercilessly over her panties. Just when she thinks she might explode from the sensation, he slips one long finger inside her.

“You have such a tight little cunt, I want to taste you”

W _ait, what?_

She doesn’t get a chance to react, because he’s already shifted her across the bed and he’s on his knees on the floor, between her legs, tearing the tights off her in one clean swoop. His hands slide up her thighs, followed by his mouth kissing every inch of her legs as his face gets nearer to her throbbing pussy. He spreads her thighs and drapes them across his shoulders. He doesn’t take off her panties just yet; instead he uses his tongue to move aside the soft fabric just slightly, licking along the outside seam of her panties. She feels like a tightly wound coil, ready to spring.

He slips his hands under her bottom, cupping each of her cheeks in his large hands and slides her closer to his face. He starts to take off her underwear slipping them off her starting from her ass, his thumbs hooking at the front of the thin elastic band and tugging them off. She is fully naked now, entirely exposed to him and for once happy that she had given in to Rose’s badgering about letting the grooming droid wax her.

He crushes his mouth to her wet pussy and she bucks into his mouth, losing all control over her body. The sensation is unbelievable; his soft lips feel so hot on her and when he licks up her wet folds, stopping at her engorged clit she lets out the most guttural moan she’s ever heard. She’s not sure if that even came from her, or if a wild animal had somehow found its way into her room. 

He runs both his thumbs up her slit, dipping them inside her just enough to cover them with her wetness. He uses them to spread her slicked folds and flicks his wet, velvety tongue against her clit. First slowly but picking up the pace matching the increasingly urgent bucking of her hips into his mouth. She’s lost all sense of modesty and if he were to stop now for any reason she would probably go insane.

He continues to lick her as he slips one of his fingers inside her cunt, followed by a second. She feels so full, the wet filthy sound his fingers are making as they go in and out of her, together with her moaning and his grunting is heady and she can feel that she’s close to the edge, her lower belly tightening.

He takes his mouth off her clit and replaces it with his thumb, the additional pressure being exactly what she needed. She can feel her pussy tighten around his fingers, her thighs pressing into his shoulders as her ass lifts completely off the bed, careening towards her orgasm.

“Good girl, cum for me”

And she does. She can feel this orgasm from the top of her head all the way to the bottom of her toes, moaning loudly as she fists the bed sheets around her.

It takes her a few seconds to catch her breath. When she opens her eyes, she’s realizing that it’s no longer night, the sun is dawning and she wonders how long they have been at this.

“We’re not even close to being done sweetheart” he says in his sexy deep voice as he slides one arm under her and pushes her back on the bed, undoing his pants with the other. She wraps her legs around his waist and slides his pants and underwear off using her feet, springing his cock free. He really is huge, but that no longer scares her; she craves it, she wants him to burry himself inside her, right now.

He reaches between them grabbing his throbbing erection with his right hand, teasing the entrance of her pussy with it, laving it with her juices. She can feel herself dripping wet, not just from the mind blowing orgasm he just gave her but from anticipation.

He positions himself on top of her, sliding his hands back under her bottom so her can angle her hips so he can enter her.

“Kylo Ren!” followed by a couple loud bangs on the door makes them pause, their eyes snapping open.

“Fuck, really?” he mutters quietly.

“I don’t care if you are my Master or the Supreme Leader of the First Order! You fucking stop…stop fucking right now!”

Kylo looks genuinely worried and that makes her burst out laughing.

“I am so SERIOUS! This is NOT cool! You have ten seconds to get off my sister and open this door or I will bust it”.

Rey can’t stop cackling as he gives up, visibly frustrated and rests his head on her shoulder, still panting.

She runs her fingers through his hair and kisses the top of his head. “Guess this would be a downside of having a big brother then?”

He doesn’t seem nearly as amused as she is. He arches an eyebrow when he looks at her as he pulls up his pants and says in a quiet voice “yah well YOU got to cum”.

Precipitating a roar of hysterical laughter out of her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :) I hope you like and I'm sorry I gave Kylo Ren blue balls! I'm sure he'll get the chance to finish the job but that won't be likely to happen when Rey's big bad brother sleeps next door.


	19. Chapter 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bit of a transition chapter - there are other people in the Galaxy after all.  
> Not to worry, there is still a sprinkle of Reylo cuteness. But just a little bit.  
> And some plot!

Kylo waits for Rey to finish getting dressed before he opens the door to face the vicious Sarlacc his friend had suddenly turned into. He can practically feel Wyatt seething on the other side of the door.

He cannot remember a time when Wyatt’s temper had flared to that extend and he certainly had never been mad at him before. This is a first.

He glances at Rey sitting on her bed pulling on her boots; her face is flushed and glowing from the orgasm he’d given her just minutes ago, her lips are red and swollen from kissing him, her eyes half lidded and sleepy. She looks satisfied. She’s beautiful.

That was a first for him too; he’s never felt the desire to put his mouth on a woman before her. But the way she had offered herself to him so sweetly, so complete and uninhibited made him want to give her everything he could. He wanted to teach her everything he knew, everything he liked and guide her to find everything she liked. He relished the idea that he was the first man, the only man, who had touched her like that. If it’s up to him entirely, he will be also be the last.

She may very well be the last woman he gets to touch. Not just because he doesn’t want anyone but her, but because Wyatt Ren will probably kill him as soon as he opens the door. He hadn’t thought about the fact that Wyatt was sleeping in the room across the hall from Rey’s and he could more than likely hear everything they were up to. He hadn’t considered how Wyatt would feel about him potentially deflowering his long lost baby sister. He’s never had to think about the consequences of his actions, maybe that’s something he should work on.

Rey stands up in front of him, staring up with those beautiful big doe eyes and he leans in to give her a soft kiss.

“A farewell kiss?” she says and he can see her dimples starting to form again as she stifles her laugh.

Kylo rolls his eyes, takes in a deep breath and opens the door.

Wyatt is standing inches from his face, his rage seeping from him and permeating into the Force around them.

“I see you brought back up.” Kylo nods to Rey’s vulptices standing behind Wyatt, baring their teeth at him. “So, is there something you need to discuss with me Wyatt Ren?”

“I pledged my life to you. You have my loyalty; you have my love and respect. You do not get her!” Wyatt’s nostrils are flaring, his breath is hitched and his fists are clenched by his side, shaking.

“Are you going to take a swing at me?”

“Was thinking about it” he answers through clenched teeth.

“Why? I’m an adult, she’s an adult. I didn’t do anything to her that she didn’t consent to” that may not have been the right thing to say because Wyatt closed the distance between them and their faces were a hair away from touching.

“You don’t touch her again”

“Or?” Kylo’s voice lowers in warning.

“Would you two stop already?” Rey walks over and stands between them, but they don’t break eye contact.

“You don’t get it. She’s my sister. She was all I had once, I fed her, I raised her, I took care of her and I had lost her for good because of the choices I made. Now that her an I have found each other again, I can’t let you turn her into your play thing. You can’t have her!”

“It’s not like that and you know it!” Kylo shouts. Wasn’t it Wyatt who was encouraging him search his feelings and all that bullshit just the other day?

“Hi. No one gets to “have” me. No one owns me and sure as shit no one gets to “give me”. I’ve been taking care of myself for most of my life, I don’t need my very own personal dark Knight to follow me around and protect me from my own decisions, thank you very much!” Rey chimes in, irritated. “You are both being ridiculous. Why can’t we just deal with this how normal people deal with awkward situations and pretend it never happened?”

 _Wait, does she mean she wishes it never happened?_ The thought makes Kylo uneasy.

“I know you don’t need me Rey, I know you can take care of yourself but this is…instinct.” Wyatt seems to be coming to his senses, realizing that he had threatened the Master of the Knights of Ren, an act that would normally require intense disciplining. Considering the circumstances however, Rey might be on to something about just letting everything go.

“Could you just please, _please_ keep it in your pants while I’m planet side?”

“Fair” is all Kylo says.

He will show his friend that much respect. Besides, it would be best if he stayed away from the little Jedi until he can figure out where all this is leading them and what that will mean for their sworn enemies status.

“Great so we’re all done acting like a pair of fucking twats for now? I’ll go make us some breakfast” Rey smacks them on the arms and strolls away, her crystal beasts in tow.

“She has the worst language I’ve ever heard coming from a girl” Kylo smirks as he watches her walk away.

“Kylo. Before I lost my shit just then, I was coming to talk to you. I woke up to a message from Sunny Ren. He didn’t give a lot of detail but he asked that we join him on Jedha as soon as possible. We have to leave tomorrow morning.”

“Fuck!” Kylo feels like he’s just been kicked in the groin. “You know she’s not going to come with us.”

“Then we’ll make her” Wyatt answers darkly.

What he wouldn’t give to reverse time by about ten minutes, when he was wrapped up in Rey, without a single care in the universe.

“Ugh. We might as well do this now” he says, shuffling towards the kitchen.

“Rey?” they both call out at the same time.

...

Wyatt Ren was the most powerful Force user in the Knights of Ren, other than himself and their Master of course. Luckily, when he had contacted Wyatt for his help, Sunny found out that he was in the company of Kylo Ren. On Hoth though? There’s probably a story there.

He’s really hoping that Kylo hadn’t decided for whatever reason to station them on the ice planet instead of Cloud City on Bespin. They’ll be here in a day’s time and between all three of them, they will hopefully be able to understand what is going on.

Sunny had been wrong about Jedha; he thought he was coming to a grave yard, to search for some overlooked Jedi relics that would help them along the way to their goal of restoring balance to the Galaxy.

To say what he had found was a surprise would be an understatement. The planet was behaving like a sentient being, alive and with its own strength in the Force. Moreover, it seemed like the planet was _creating_ Force.  He had never heard of anything like it and it made him curious.

Luke had always been obsessed with the secrets he thought he would find here, but he never came. After the civilization on Jedha was destroyed by the Empire with the original death star, the planet had become uninhabitable.

Sunny suspects that something had triggered the planet into a sort of a re-birth. The planet was known to be have a desert climate, primarily made out of rock and sand. But what he found was utterly different – there were large patches of lush fields of tall grass, young trees and wild life.

When he got to the location where the ancient Temple of the Kyber had been smashed into a series of caves inside a massive crater, he found that it was overgrown with lush vines, ferns and mosses.

How was this possible? And what had caused this planet’s eco system to change so drastically?

He spent his first couple of days exploring the caves of the temple. The Force was so strong down there if felt like it was liquid, flowing through him and surrounding him. Light and Darkness in perfect balance, creating life and strengthening itself from it. He felt like it wanted him to stay there, it wanted his strength and energy and pulled him in like a magnet. What scared him into leaving was his desire to stay, to forget about everything he was, everything he was committed to and just exist within the Force in this place.

He had ventured out of the old Jedha City site to explore a few days after.  After about a half day hike north bound, he found what appeared to be a drilling rig installation. He thought it was abandoned but as he got closer to it he saw there were workers hovering about the installation.

He crawled on his belly close to the ledge above the operation, close enough to get a good idea about what was going on.

Two of the workers appeared to be slaves. They were being pushed from behind by three other men with blasters their hands and feet shackled.

Sunny abhorred the practice of slavery; knowing that the First Order’s trooper program is made solely of former child slaves made him sick to his stomach.

He knew Kylo Ren had not played any part in the creation trooper program, that it was Hux and his father before him who had developed the concept, but every so often he couldn’t help mentally admonishing his friend for being part of such an organization.

Kylo Ren became Supreme Leader because the only other option would’ve been general Hux and that was not an option. Sunny knows as well as Kylo had, that one of the first items on Hux’s agenda would’ve been executing Kylo Ren as well as the rest of the Knights of Ren. But Sunny couldn’t help his disappointment that Kylo had not done anything to change the destructive path of the First Order, their lust for ownership and power seemingly impossible to curtail. Doing nothing is just as much of a choice as anything else. Sunny had planned on discussing these concerns with his Master but then decided he preferred not to spend a few days submerged into a bacta tank. 

After spending a good half hour of him flattened to the ground on his stomach, he heard the sounds of engines approaching.

He was not expecting to see one of the First Order’s atmospheric assault landers.

Troopers marched out and the three workers brought over two large crates. The troopers loaded them into the transport and then fired on the bound slaves.  He felt a heavy disturbance in the Force as the slaves perished. Sunny always felt any loss of life close in proximity through the Force, it usually felt like his heartbeat slowed for half of a beat, then returned to normal.

These two beings’ deaths however, had left him breathless, like he had been kicked in the chest and had landed on a hard surface. He was reeling on the ground for a good amount of time, trying to go unnoticed by the troopers while he could stabilize his ragged breath. Fortunately for him, the transport had left just as swiftly as it had made its entrance.

He crawled away on his hands and knees and when he was far away from the site where the three workers couldn’t hear him, he turned over to lay on his back let out an excruciating thundering scream.

He wasn’t aware how long he had been lying there, but the sun setting was an indication it had been a few hours. He finally sat up and gathered his thoughts; he needed to get back to his ship to meditate on everything that has happened and everything he has witnessed. He also needed to get a hold of Wyatt Ren and ask for his help.

There were two issues he need to deal with, the first and most pressing being his body’s extreme reaction to Force disturbance caused by the deaths he witnessed. The only time he had experienced a Force disturbance of this magnitude was in the aftermath of the Hosnian system destruction. He had also felt the destruction of Endor recently, but not to this extent.

The second problem they needed to deal with was the First Order and their presence on Jedha as well as their troubling use of disposable slave labour. Either Kylo hadn’t told them of these operations, or, and most disturbing, Kylo isn’t aware of any of this.

If Hux is running operations behind his back, Kylo Ren could be in more danger than he may be prepared for. Of course, his Master had never trusted the smarmy ginger general, but if Hux is behind this mysterious operation, he obviously had help to set this up, meaning a rift had already formed within the First Order and Kylo will have a mutiny on his hands sooner than he expected.

He spent a few days exploring farther out from the temple ruins and found another two dozen of these drilling rigs, with the same kind of labour set up.

He wanted to contact Auburn and have her come here, but he knew Kylo was right to split them up, as much as it pained him. Auburn relied too much on his Force abilities because she hadn’t honed her own. Being around her, as much as he loved her, felt like he was operating two sabers with one kyber crystal; as soon as he had been parted from her, he could feel his power in the Force more focused, his extra senses sharpened.

Auburn Ren was just as powerful as the other Knights but she was so naturally able to read people and manipulate them to her will, that she never used it. It bothered him and it bothered Kylo Ren as well. She hated being on Naboo on her own, but Sunny knew being on her own, having no choice but to rely on her abilities with the Force would be immensely beneficial to her. So no, he would not call on her for help.

He had contacted Wyatt Ren instead and he had agreed to join him within the day, along with Kylo Ren. At the very least, they would be able to ensure Kylo was safe while in their company.

Attari Ren was the next person he had contacted. He was on the Finalizer and had access to all Hux’s information and resources. He was also in the most immediate danger if Hux was planning a coup d’état.

Kylo and Wyatt will be here tomorrow and until then, Sunny will meditate for guidance and try to rest.

He sits down on the ground close to the edge of the temple relics, crosses his legs and unfolds his hands palms up in the meditation stance, opening himself to the Force completely. He could feel it flow through him, he could feel new life growing all around him, he could smell the grass, the dirt and feel the breeze in the quiet of the night.

“I am one with the Force, the Force is with me. I do not fear. All is as the Force wills it”.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for coming back and sticking with the story!! I'm currently travelling for work so I have tons of time at night to sit and write!  
> Some of you have been calling Wyatt 'Thor' in your comments which is hilarious and awesome and now I can't really picture anyone else - I didn't have him likened with an actual person before that. So it made me think of the other KoR. (kind of fun to think about it!)
> 
> When I was imagining the Knights of Ren, I was thinking of Sunny in the likeness of Armie Hammer. Just the height and the pretty face and everything and mentally cast Idris Elba as Attari Ren.  
> I was also thinking Olivia Munn for Alix and Alexandra Dadadrio for C'mmaron, not sure about Auburn yet but I welcome suggestions!  
> But damn, so far the Knights or Ren are a pretty bunch!
> 
> I'll probably have another update tomorrow night, I'll be working on it now after some dinner and inspiration juice (aka wine!)


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Changes are happening!

“Rey?” she turns to them, kaf in hand.

Kylo didn’t get a chance to say anything before Wyatt stepped in “We have to leave tomorrow”

 “Oh?” was all she replied. The lack of emotion in her response bothered Kylo; he thought she would be more disappointed to see her brother leave. He had hoped that she would feel something resembling gloom to part with him. No one was ever sad to see him leave.

He could see Wyatt’s hands twitching; he was actually serious about making her come with them, seeing as how he is on the verge of knocking her out into a Force sleep. _I should probably stop him, but at the same time…_

“I’m coming with you.”

Now _that_ was unexpected. Both he and Wyatt were caught off guard, their mouths hanging open with surprise.

“Where are we going?”

“Um…Rey? You understand what this would mean for you right?” Kylo asked, feeling extremely foolish because he actually didn’t have a clue what any of this meant. His entire life is entirely out of control right now, he feels exhausted thinking continuously about what his next moves will be. Maybe he should just relax, go with the flow. _Yah that’s something the Master of the Knights of Ren should be doing. Idiot._

“No, but I do know that if I don’t go with you, the only option I have is to stay here, alone, freezing my ass off. I can’t go to the Resistance because I don’t know where they are; besides, while this bond continues to exist, they can’t risk having me around.” she always talks about her friends with such sadness.

“Just so we’re clear though, I’m coming with you because I don’t have much in terms of option. I’m not pledging myself to the Knights of Ren and I certainly am not joining the First Order in any capacity.”

“You’re coming with me because you’re my sister and I won’t leave you behind again.”

“Right, ya well I gathered that from your plan to knock me the fuck out and drag me to your ship. Figured it would be easier for all of us if I just came voluntarily” she adds, rolling her eyes at Wyatt Ren who has the decency to look contrite.

“I’m a powerful Force user and you two dumb asses whisper really loudly.”

It strikes Kylo extremely amusing that he has gone from feared Supreme Leader slash Master of the Knights of Ren to being called a dumb ass by a Jedi. Considering the tailspin his life is in right now, the utter lack of decorum fits perfectly.

He clears his throat and walks over to grab the mugs Rey had so graciously filled for him and Wyatt. “We’re going to Jedha”

“What’s Jedha?”

“Well honestly, right now it’s just a pile of rocks and sand” Wyatt answers, displeased at the thought. Clearly, reining in negative emotions was not a skill either of them had, judging by Rey’s disapproving nose crinkle.

“It is believed that the first Jedi Order was housed on Jedha, in the Temple of the Kyber. The ancient civilization living there were first humans who began to understand the powers of the Force. Voyagers from all over the Galaxy travelled there throughout the centuries to gain wisdom from the Force, to pray and to heal.” Kylo has never been on Jedha himself, but Snoke and Luke had imparted this knowledge to him as part of his training, along with a sense of reverence towards the planet’s ancient secrets.

“Until the Empire blew it up with the Death Star” Wyatt added with disgust. Of all his Knights, Wyatt is the one who has always been the most vocal about their service to the First Order and by extension, the old Empire.

Rey doesn’t seem phased one way or the other. She’s doing a really good job at shielding her thoughts, because Kylo can’t tell what she’s thinking or how she’s feeling. He could prod, but that didn’t end so well for him last time.

“What do you think the other Knights are going to think about me being there?”

“It doesn’t matter.” Wyatt answers calmly.

It really doesn’t; sure they would be curious and Kylo would have to come clean to them about everything. They would maybe take issue with her alliance to the Resistance. Auburn Ren would have all sorts of issues but that’s only because she hates change. And she’s kind of a bitch. But that’s nothing Kylo couldn’t handle. The knights always defer to his judgment.

“Sunny Ren is the only one planet side; the other Knights are occupied with other responsibilities. Make sure you bring what’s left of my saber. The Force is really strong on Jedha, you should be able to meditate and attune the kyber to you and fix it.”

“ _My_ saber. It chose me, remember? “

Kylo closes his eyes and grinds his teeth; he just doesn’t have the energy to get into this again. He’s concerned about what Sunny’s found there to make him reach out for help. He has neglected all his duties as Supreme Leader since he got here. Attari Ren is diligently covering for him, but he needs to get back to the Finalizer before Hux manages to blow up another star system for no reason whatsoever.

“Bring the Jedi texts too. I think Sunny Ren will be extremely interested in reading all of them. Out of all of us, he is the strongest with both sides of the Force. Bring clothes too. And some extra of whatever you’re baking over there, it smells amazing” Wyatt seems really enthusiastic about having Rey join them.

“Can I bring Max and Luna? I don’t want to leave them here on their own.” Of course she doesn’t. Kylo would be surprised if she had the heart to ever leave anyone or anything behind. Except for him, obviously. Leaving him unconscious on the floor of the Supremacy was acceptable.

“Yah, you can bring the little hellions but I swear Rey, if that fucker tries to bite me again, he will be floating in open space.”

She giggles and right on que, the vulptex growls in his direction.

“What’s for breakfast?”

“There’s biscuits in the oven. We can eat them with butter and preserves, but honestly that’s kind of the last of the supplies. You boys eat a lot.”

Kylo smirks at that; he’s going to miss this cozy living arrangement. Minus her near death experience of course, or getting cock blocked by his so-called best friend, or getting bit by a vulptex, or the cold and endless snow surrounding them. He’s actually not going to miss any of it now that he thinks about it more, he just likes being around her all the time, without any other distractions or duties.

Kylo’s still standing leaning on the doorway, drinking his kaf watching her. Wyatt took his seat on the bench, facing away from the table and also watching his sister toil around her kitchen. The idea of going back to rations is troubling for both of them.

“Do I have to dress like you guys? Because I do not own a single piece of black clothing.”

“I think C’mmaron left a some of her stuff in my transport, you’ll probably fit in them.”

“I assume that’s another one of the Knights then? And she would be ok with me borrowing her clothes? She won’t turn me into a skewer if I accidentally rip her cape or something?”

“There’s seven of us in total Rey. Myself, Sunny, Attari, C’mmaron, Alix and Auburn. And Master Kylo. He’s the only one that wears a cape. We get robes”

“What if I want to wear a cape too?” she’s obviously having a go at her brother. Kylo finds it a delight to just observe her being mean to people who aren’t him.

“I’m not wearing a mask”

“You don’t have to wear a mask Rey. Sunny Ren is the only inhabitant of that planet”

“Is he cute?”

“What?” she’s getting under Wyatt’s skin and it’s hysterical. Kylo can’t help his laughter but feels the tiniest pang of jealousy at the idea she would find another man attractive. _Stop being an Idiot._

“How are we getting there? I assume that as soon as the Falcon gets into hyper drive I’ll get blown to kingdom come?”

“The Falcon’s jumps are tracked by the First Order. But you shouldn’t be using that heap of garbage anymore, it’s just a matter of time before that thing falls apart in midair.” And he really hates that ship.

“We’ll take Kylo’s Upsilon. It’s by far the best transport credits can buy, it’s well armed and no one would dare approach it when we leave it unattended. I’ll leave mine here and we can come back to it once we finish with Sunny.”

“Well, sounds like you have it all planned out big brother. Let’s eat and then I’ll start packing my stuff and some food. You may want to check your ship for porgs before you leave it here for an undetermined amount of time, those little bastards love ships and they do a lot of damage!”

…

She felt like a traitor. Probably because she _was_ a traitor. She had just volunteered to join Kylo Ren and the Knights of Ren on a mystery mission, on some strange planet she’d never heard of. How will she explain this to Finn and Poe and the rest of her friends?

Her choices had never been simple, but this was; she would not leave her brother for anything. She will not join the First Order but she also could not be parted from Kylo Ren, the Force had seen to that. Rey felt right about her decision to join them and stayed hopeful that at the very least, she will be able to mend her saber if what the men had told her about the Force on the planet was true.

Her blood was racing, she had been cooped up on this frozen prison for far too long, hibernating; the promise of a new adventure awoke her scavenger spirit. She hankered to explore, to learn new things, see new places. This was a welcome change.

She will miss the memories she had made here, the sense of home and family she had garnered in the last year and a bit.

The best thing she could do for the Resistance was leaving with Kylo and Wyatt. If she was with them, the Resistance wasn’t being actively hunted by this man or his First Order.

That thought was tremendously comforting to her, and it spurred her to finish packing the few things she had, which wasn’t much. Her texts, a few clothes and the remnants of the light saber were the extent of her property. She also packed the left over biscuits she had baked this morning, preserves, some dehydrated vegetables and a crate of wine. Because it’s a necessity at this point and from what she’s seen, neither Wyatt or Kylo would protest to this particular carry-on baggage.

Wyatt and Kylo were gone for a few hours getting their ships ready, one for travel, one being prepped to spend an indeterminate amount of time in the cold. They gave her a wide berth to clean the base and prepare it for lock down. She went out to tend to the electrical equipment one last time, ensure the back-up generators were working properly. She didn’t want to come back to total black out. _If I ever come back._

Wyatt’s leaving his ship here, but who knows when and if they will come back for it. The resistance was not coming back here. Hoth was returning to being an undisturbed world of silent frozen land mass.  

They had their dinner together, conversation kept at a minimum and then each of them went to sleep in their own rooms. She was exhausted from the little sleep she got the night before and not having fully recovered from her concussion. Who knows what was waiting for them on Jedha and when she will experience the luxury of having her own warm, comfy space to sleep in.

She finally drifts off to sleep, her anticipation of what tomorrow would bring stoking the embers of the fire inside her heart.

***

Their trip to Jedha had gone without a hitch. Kylo and Wyatt piloted the Upsilon while she explored the rest of the transport. All in, not much excitement to be found; unlike the Millennium Falcon, this ship was well maintained, crisp and sterile in the style of the First Order. There were no urgent maintenance issues requiring attention, no proximity alerts, nothing that was unpredicted; she can’t remember if she’s ever been on a trip where everything went so smoothly.   


Jedha was surprising; Wyatt had given her the idea that it was a desolate desert planet and she was expecting something in the likeness of Jakku. But when they broke atmosphere and approached landing, she could see grass and trees and nature and she was eager to step out and run through the lush greenery.

She could feel how strong the Force was on this planet. Stronger than she’s ever felt it anywhere else, but unbalanced. There’s a disturbance and the Force feels like it’s an injured animal.

“What happened?” she asks. Wyatt’s furrowed brows and Kylo’s clenched jaw telling her they feel it and they are apprehensive.

They land the ship next to another Upsilon class transport and a Tie Silencer parked on the ground.

“What the fuck, that’s _my ship_ ” Kylo says startled.

They land and walk down the ramp, Kylo and Wyatt in front with their sabers light. Rey’s never seen a double bladed lighsaber before; Wyatt was wielding one with a pair of crimson red ends. The hum from both sabers made her wistful of her own weapon. She had her staff though, and that was good enough for now.

“Oi! Holster your weapons lads” she hears another man’s voice and sees him within seconds. He’s dressed in the same boots and long tunic as Wyatt and Kylo, minus the cowl. He’s not wearing a mask and as she expected, this man was also impossibly attractive: tall, muscular, had perfect ebony skin and beautiful big dark eyes. _Gotta be the dark side._

“Attari Ren! What are you doing here? Did Sunny ask you to come as well?”

“Master. Wyatt Ren” he slightly bows his head with respect and with a brief pause nods his head to her “Jedi” of course he knew who she was.

“There are many things we need to discuss” Attari continues without taking his eyes away from her. “But first things first: Sunny is missing and I can feel his presence in the Force but I can’t pin point his location. It’s as if he’s being cloaked”

Both Wyatt and Kylo look incredibly distraught at the news. This is not the kind of adventure she had expected, but at this point she knows the Force has plans of its own. She follows the three men to a massive crater where a makeshift bed was spread out on the grass.

The crater was calling to her, akin to the cave on Ach-To without the overwhelming darkness, but so much potent energy she found it hard to resist and hold herself back from climbing inside.

“This is the site of the Temple of the Kyber” Wyatt says as he places his arm around her shoulder. Attari looks at them puzzled but doesn’t say anything yet, the concern for their fellow Knight clearly taking precedence over anything else at this time.

“He was here, we spoke yesterday, he was supposed to be waiting for us. Do you know why he called us here?” Wyatt asks.

“No. I contacted him when I escaped from the First Order”

“ESCAPED?” both knights exclaimed dumbfounded.

_This is going straight fucking sideways now._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One more update! My last night in the hotel before I get to go home. I hope you like what's going on so far, we're getting into some plot thickness for the next little bit, but I promise there will be some fluff and smut to come. That usually just writes itself!   
> I am on Tumblr but I do not know how to use it lol RiaRia84 I just follow people and "like" posts. I spend many hours just mindlessly navigating the Reylo universe.


	21. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And then there were four! Attari Ren's very bad day and a sprinkle of cute fluffiness.

“That ginger mother fucker!” Kylo yelled at no one in particular, utterly irate as Attari Ren had finished telling his story of how he ended up here.

All three of them had listened to his entire incredulous ordeal without interrupting.

_Hux was bitter that Kylo had left Attari Ren to tend to his Supreme Leader duties in his stead; he really hated being shadowed more. He had gone out of his way to avoid Attari aboard the Finalizer._

_This gave Attari plenty of time to explore the ship and naturally, the first stop he had made on his recognizance mission was over to the restricted area, where research and development was contained. He had silently followed Hux on his way there and plucked the access code right from the forefront of his mind._

_He waited until Hux left and entered the controlled area with ease. He was fully prepared to mentally manipulate the scientists to obtain information on their current projects, but there were none to be found. The entire area was completely void of workers or guards. The Force was nudging him with warnings, this had been too easy, but he needed to find what Hux was hiding._

_He passed endless rows of abandoned work stations but without a single hint at any of the work that was in progress. Finally, at the back of the massive hall, surrounded by a reinforced infrared security shield, Attari saw what he was looking for._

_Breaking into the security shield took little work; when these security measures were set in place, they had not considered the abilities of the Force sensitive. The workstation housed a large data processor with five monitors. He logged in using Kylo Ren’s credentials – as he is the Supreme Leader, he ought to have access to all information on this ship. This workstation was no exception._

_There were hundreds of drives with droves of data, a regular person would have no idea where to begin searching for anything; but Attari Ren was no such person. He went right to the encrypted files, the ones being backed up to an off-site server and began sifting through the various cliché named operation names: The Odyssey, The Dionysus, The Appolo, The Demeter….the list just kept going, obviously a theme for dear ol’ Armitage. And then he found what he was looking for - The Achilles “how predictable” he had thought._

_He opened the files and began reading, his glee at finding the files was immediately wiped away as he delved into their contents: Hux was developing a biological weapon, a neurotoxin. He was already at the testing phase of his program as Attari found in progress reports – he was testing his new weapon on Force sensitives he had tracked down and was holding captive on Chandrilla of all places. He was foaming at the mouth with rage. He sensed the Force warning but it was too late to heed it._

_“You fucking son of a bitch” is all he remembered saying before he was stunned by a pair of troopers. Hux smiled at him eerily as he leaned over his immobilized body and whispered to him “Don’t worry Ren, your Master and your worthless kin of fanatics will be joining you soon”. One of the troopers had injected him with some sort of paralyzing agent and he faded into a blackout._

_He woke up some time later, with a blinding headache, cuffed into an interrogation chair. Whatever they had drugged him with was still in his system, inhibiting his ability to use the Force, although his senses had begun to awaken from his stupor. They would be back to drug him again soon, they were likely keeping tabs on his vitals._

_Attari heard someone fiddle with the cell’s door and prepared himself for the fight; even without the use of the Force he was a formidable fighter._

_He was surprised Hux had sent a man of Commander Peavy’s rank to tend to this errand, he had expected a medical droid accompanied by troopers, maybe a lieutenant. Certainly not  Edrison Peavy._

_The Commander didn’t say a word as he carefully entered and closed the door behind him. He looked over Attari Ren, checking for any obvious injury and then walked over to him, releasing the bindings around his ankles._

_He then spoke with the stern tone of a man of his rank and experience “We don’t have much time; the droid is due to come medicate you again in ten minutes.  You have to leave the Finalizer immediately; find the Supreme Leader and tell him of everything you’ve seen. None of you will be able to return to the Finalizer once you escape, Hux is likely to turn the First Order’s propaganda machine against Kylo Ren. It will either be that or face the punishment from your Master, and that he will not endure.”_

_“Why are you doing this? Betraying your General?”_

_“I’ve been a soldier with the Empire and then the First Order my entire life. I’ve served faithfully and never questioned an order, even when I maybe should have. I stood by and witnessed Hux’s destruction of the entire Hosnian System to end the Republic, the destruction of all life on Endor for gold. I cannot stand by and watch when he unleashes this new abomination on the galaxy. His lack of scruples and utter lack of restraint to destroy life in order to achieve his goals makes him the worst war criminal I’ve seen in my life time. He’s the top of the category which includes Emperor Palpatine and Snoke. I never thought I would see a weapon as appalling as Starkiller; but using weaponized neurotoxins is craven, beneath all combat standards.”_

_Peavy took a moment to clear his throat, walking closer to the interrogation rig and releasing the mechanism keeping Attari’s arms bound. As he stood and shook his limbs, Peavy stood in front of him, looking him in the eyes “I knew your father Attari, we grew up on Cantonica together before I joined the Empire as a young officer. I can’t imagine he views your …um…career pursuits…in a favorable light, but I’m certain he would not rejoice to know you were tortured and murdered by a sniveling character the likes of Armitage Hux.”_

_Attari was taken aback by the commander’s words and his help. “You are betraying the First Order by helping me Edrison”_

_“Soon enough we will all have to choose sides. I will not be on the side history will judge as gutless sycophants, murdering innocents in the most cowardly way, acquiring power to the only purpose of having it.”_

_Peavy hands him his saber and adds “Hux has support from mercenaries’ groups. I don’t know the details, but I have received intelligence reports that he is in cahoots with Kanjiclub and possibly the Guavians. This is all the information I have, please put it and your new found freedom to good use Attari Ren. My regards to your Master” he salutes and leaves the cell with the door open._

_Attari had been able to make it to the hangar bay unhindered, clearly Hux hadn’t informed the crew of the Finalizer of the change in status of the Knights of Ren. That will come shortly, as soon as his escape will be discovered._

_He found Kylo Ren’s Silencer, used his personal codes and jetted out, before anyone could place any obstacles in his way, and headed to Jedha. Knowing Kylo Ren otherwise preoccupied, Attari sought out Sunny as an ally in his self-appointed mission to find out where Hux’s intended targets for his nerve gas attacks were._

“But when I got here, I couldn’t not find any trace of him. I was only here for maybe half an hour before you landed”.

Kylo unleashes another string of obscenities. Wyatt is also visibly shaken. Rey is livid. She needs to get a hold of Poe and tell them, warn them about Hux’s plans. No, she needs to find Hux and rip him apart from limb to limb with her bare hands, tear his black heart out and burn the rest of him still alive.

“That was vile” Attari looks at her with concern, but Kylo and Wyatt snicker.

“Very dark little Jedi” Wyatt smiles at her.

“Can somebody tell me just what in the Force is going on? Why were you together on Hoth and how is it that you found yourselves in the friendly company of the First Order’s pubic enemy number one, the last member of the Jedi Order? By all means, at least one of you should’ve attempted to murder one or the other.”

“It’s a long story, but don’t worry, there were plenty of close calls in the murder department” Wyatt continues to joke. Rey doesn’t feel totally comfortable yet, she’s becoming very aware that she is technically outnumbered three-to-one at this point by Knights of Ren.

“We need to find Sunny so we’ll just have to give you the highlights but you’ll get the full story in good time.” Kylo says to him, walking over to the edge of the crater, where Rey had unconsciously wandered off.

“It’s a tale as old as time really. Boy interrogates girl, girl scars boy. Force binds boy to girl, girl helps boy kill Supreme Leader. Boy saves girl. Girl likes boy, boy really likes girl. Girl turns out to be my baby sister and boy doesn’t get to touch her again.” Attari’s eyes are wide with disbelief at what he’s just heard.

“What d’ya mean your sister? And what oh what d’ya mean doesn’t get to touch her _again?”_

Rey can feel her cheeks on fire and she can see Kylo’s chagrin. Wyatt just rolls his eyes.

“Right. Ok. Long story. Wow. So are you still a Jedi then?”

“I was never a Jedi really. It was just a designation the resistance had attributed to me because I am Force sensitive and know how to wield a light saber.”

“Can I ask about the critters or is that also a very convoluted story?”

“They followed me from Crait, they’re sweet and they won’t get in our way. This is Max and Luna. You can tell them apart easily because Max is always growling at Kylo Ren” she giggles.

She can feel the strong pull to the crater again. “Do you guys feel it too? It’s calling to me, it’s trying to tell me something, down there” she walks over to the edge and looks in. it’s pretty steep, but not like the Ach-To cave. Without thinking she leaps in, sliding down her bum, letting the Force pull her where it wants.

“REY!” She can hear Kylo and Wyatt’s voices intertwined.

“I’m fine, come down here or wait for me but shush!”

She doesn’t hear anything else from the men up top so she proceeds through the dark of the caves. The Force in this place is magnificent, balanced and overflowing with both dark and light energy.

She feels the Force pull her to an opening and she goes without resistance. She sees an object on the rock floor, something made of metal – _a light saber!_

She bends to pick it up but as she touches it, she is hit with another Force vision.

_She’s in this cave still, meditating on the hard rock floor, feeling the force flow through her, listening to it whisper in an ancient tongue she doesn’t understand. The Force is gentle and she feels complete, at peace._

_She feels a disturbance, opens her eyes just as she hears the voices from behind her but it’s too late, the intruders shoot and her mind blanks._

“Rey, what’s wrong?” Kylo is there, crouching down next to her, trying to hold her still.

“He was here” she hands Kylo the light saber. “They stunned him and took him away”

“Who took him away? Sunny is bigger than I am, he’s not exactly easy to tote around.”

“Kanji’s. There was a hoard of them, I recognize one from when they attacked Han Solo on the ship; Razoo-Qin-Fee.”

“Fucking hell!” Kylo hollers as he stands up and pulls Rey with him, not gently. The brusque movement makes her wince and she can feel his immediate regret at harming her, even unintendedly.

He turns to face her, his eyes soft and apologetic. He’s chewing on the insight of his bottom lip, something she’s seen him do many times and she finds absolutely irresistible.

“Have you practiced shielding your thoughts lately?” his tone is admonishing but he’s saying this with a smirk and a mischievous glint in his eyes. She feels that twinge in her belly again.

“Good girl. Can you practice for just a little longer?” she nods in response because he’s closed the distance between them and she is breathless.

He places a hand around her waist and cups her cheek with the other, pulling her tightly into his body. She reaches up and crushes his mouth with hers. Her lips part for him immediately, welcoming his tongue with her own. His hand slides from her waist to her bottom, which he cups roughly. His other hand drops from her face onto her breast and he brushes her nipple with his thumb, over her soft shirt. She can feel him getting harder, heat pooling rapidly between her legs.

They’re getting dangerously close to the point of no return, she can feel her body screaming at her, demanding to know why they are still dressed and standing. The kiss is so wet, their silky tongues exploring each other so thoroughly, her breath so accelerated, her quickened heartbeat, it makes her feel tipsy. “I want you” the words come out of her mouth without her being aware of it.

“We can’t. I promised” he says against her lips, while he is still kissing her softly. “Patience my little Jedi. Soon I’ll get to fuck you any way you like” he pulls her bottom lip between his teeth, a throaty moan slipping out of her before she could stop it.  

“Seriously though!! It hasn’t even been a day fucks sakes!!!” they hear from above.

“Your brother is a massive pain in my ass” he says, but he is still holding her close.

“We best get back up there before he goes all Sith on us again” she says and he leans in to pepper her with more soft kisses on her lips, her cheeks, her throat. “Or…not?”

He chuckles and sighs against her hair. “Soon enough sweetheart”

They climb the side of the crater and tell the Knights what she saw, ignoring the darkness seething from Wyatt at the sight of their swollen lips and generally disheveled appearance.

“Fucking Kanjiclub. What are they doing here? We need to find where they’re hiding. They might not be aware that he’s a Knight of Ren, they could just think that he’s just another Force Sensitive that came to Jedha to meditate and snuck up on him.” Attari sounded hopeful.

“They might still be planet side. We could try to reach out into the Force together. If we do it as a unit, we will find them”.

They form a circle and sit together, legs crossed. Rey feels Kylo take her right hand, Wyatt her left. They join hands with Attari across from her. They close their eyes and repeat the now familiar creed:

“I am one with the Force, the Force is with me. I do not fear. All is as the Force wills it”.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Every time I get a comment, a kudo or a hit I get so very excited you guys!
> 
> I am not at all a creative person, quite the opposite! In my day to day job I am an auditor. This is so far out of my comfort zone but I love writing this story so much now, and I would write it even if I was the only one reading it. 
> 
> Getting to share it with you lovelies however is amazing and I want to thank you so much for reading!  
> I know we're getting past 50k words and these two haven't fully gotten it on yet, but it will come I promise ;)


	22. Chapter 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A pop over to Naboo and Rey gets some new threads and a heart to heart with big bro.

“There!” Rey pointed to a rock formation they could see about a hundred yards or so away. The crimson colour of dawn was giving the entire landscape an eerie feel. It had taken them about four hours to find this place, where Rey had sensed the Force user.

She knew his Force signature from the Kyber temple vision; once the four of them had focused their meditation on the sole purpose of finding Sunny Ren, the Force had linked her to his light though a thin, golden tendril that she and the Knights followed here.

“I still cannot see what you see” Attari Ren had said with a hint of frustration hours before they started their long journey on foot. “Why is the Force connecting you to him but not us, we’re his brothers”

She didn’t have any answers; since she left Kylo in the burning remnants of the Supremacy she vowed never to use the Force, but let it use her as it willed. Right now, it wanted her to find this man.

“It’s because she’s good” Kylo had chimed in but Rey rolled her eyes at what she regarded as an inane notion. She was far from being good; she had left Hoth with two of enormously dangerous Knights of Ren, picked up a third along the way and is now helping them find a fourth.

“That makes sense Master. If Sunny was down there meditating, he was in the process of balancing his darkness. The light is what calls to you Rey; the three of us have tipped to the dark because of our fear for him, because of our yearning for vengeance. You’re our only hope to find him quickly and quietly.”

Wyatt’s explanation made sense, but she was no gladder for it.  She was feeling the same emotions she experienced when the Resistance would call her their beacon of hope. Pressure. Fear. Unworthiness.

“If we’re going up against Kanjiclub, we need to fight them on their terms” Attari stood up from their meditation circle and began pacing.

“We can’t approach them in the open, sabers blazing; we need to wait until night comes, locate their shelter and quietly find and extricate Sunny as quickly as possible. The little Jedi will have to wear a mask. And you, Master, will have to stay back. If they are working with Hux, they will recognize both of you immediately. We don’t want the First Order to know anything about our movements in case one of them escapes or transmits any information of our presence here.” Rey’s watching Attari speak, feeling herself tense up.

“I don’t intend on letting any of them get an opportunity to speak a word to anyone again” Kylo’s hatred seethed through his clenched teeth.

“Don’t underestimate Razoo Qin-Fee; he’s a crafty, slimy thing. He somehow managed to escape Han’s Rathars I accidentally let loose on the freighter when they attacked the Falcon”.

Wyatt couldn’t help the tiny chuckle he just let out at that “I’d love to hear that story at some point”.

“We’ll have time for that later” Kylo replied, the slight grimace at the sound of that name hadn’t gone unnoticed.

“Kanji’s were working with the First Order then; he’s the one who reported to Hux that your BB unit was on the Millennium Falcon.” Kylo added, looking away from Rey’s eyes. Of course, that piece of information had directly led to them meeting on Takodana, when Kylo”s troops had attacked Maz’s cantina.

“I grabbed C’mmaron’s stuff from my ship, just in case” Wyatt gets up and starts walking over to Kylo’s Upsilon. “Looks like you’ll be needing it.” He pauses for a second and extends his hand to Rey “Coming?”

She grabs his hand and he pulls her up, leaving Kylo and Attari to strategize their scouting and attack further. Pretty difficult to conjure any kind of strategy where there is so little information about where they’re going and how many enemies they’re facing.

“Don’t be afraid of Attari Ren, he’s just naturally suspicious of people. More so of Force Sensitives. Very untrusting of Jedi. Basically anyone who isn’t one of us. ”

“I’m not. I’m just feeling a bit…outnumbered?”

He slowed his walk and looks at her with a hint of sadness in his expression.

“Rey, we’ve never really got a chance to talk about everything. And we don’t have time to do it now, but I need to know if you trust me. I haven’t earned your forgiveness and I won’t ask for it either”

“There is nothing to forgive Wyatt. You were a child. You made the only choice that gave you hope for survival.”

He’s looking at her like he doesn’t believe her, so she continues speaking softly as she continues to slowly walk towards the ship’s ramp:

“I held out hope for so long that they would come back for me, that they would return to Jakku any day from their mission. I fooled myself into thinking they were fighting for freedom, for a higher purpose, that they had left me to keep me safe, that they were missing me the way I missed them. That hope was wiped away when Kylo revealed to me what he saw in the Force vision we shared. I already knew on some level they were dead, but I didn’t know they had sold me.” She can feel her eyes well up with tears and she can’t look at him just yet, so she keeps walking even as he’s stopped in his tracks. She can feel the waves of guild echoing off of him into the Force.

“I know now that it wasn’t them I was waiting for; it wasn’t them who had imprinted on my soul, it wasn’t their absence I was carving into my wall one day at a time” she then turns around to face him “It was you”. She can see tears running silently down his face and feel their wet trails streaking her own face.

“There are two types of family Rey; there is the family we’re born into and the family we choose. I chose the Knights of Ren, but you are my blood. My first true friend, the first person who I loved unconditionally. I will not ask you to join us, but please trust me when I tell you that you are safe with us.”

“I know coming here was the right decision. I just feel confused, pulled into different directions between the needs of the Resistance, the friends I love there and the undeniable necessity I feel to be here, with you.”

“And Kylo Ren?”

“And Kylo Ren” she answered with a sigh, feeling something resembling relief that she’d been able to say it out loud.  What she felt for Kylo, what she felt about having those emotions and her actions as a consequence will require a lot more introspection. But lying about their existence was no longer an option.

“You’re exactly where you need to be Rey. The Resistance left you on Hoth because of Kylo, correct?” She nodded in agreement, wincing at the pain she still felt because of the separation.

“Kylo came to you. He left the First Order, he lied to us, he lied to everyone about you, to protect you. He killed Snoke to save you. He’s changed because of you, for you. If nothing else, you have to know that he would never hurt you and none of the Knights of Ren would either.”

“I’ve always seen the light in him. I assumed the light was Ben Solo and I tried to save him from Kylo Ren, but that was wrong. I was wrong. The light is intrinsic to him, as is the dark. He just has to stop fighting the light with every fiber of his being and understand that giving in to the dark side unequivocally will not end the conflict he feels. Killing the light inside him will only weaken him. But I am not convinced that he won’t stop trying to snuff it out to that end, and that is why I don’t trust him entirely.” Another admission, another step towards her own peace.

Wyatt appeared to be deep in thought; surely he was contemplating the possibility of having to choose between his Master and sister at some point because his face was contorted in a painful glower.

“I won’t give up on him” she says as she walks up the ramp and into the ship. It wasn’t just to soothe Wyatt’s growing anxiety; she meant it.

He smiles warmly and then walks past her, to one of the sleeping chambers, returning within minutes with a pile of black cloth.

“Pants, undershirt, tunic, cowl, boots. They should fit you fairly well, you and C’mmaron Ren are about the same size”.

She moves to the space where he had just walked out from and gets dressed. They fit and she wonders what the Knight whose clothes she’d appropriated was like. More importantly, was she possessive over her belongings and would that possibly lead to her being stabbed to death over the threads…

“That will do little Jedi!” Wyatt exclaims as she walks out, her eyes immediately darting to the item he is carrying under his arm.  Graphite, with a delicate silver outline around the visor and three silver lines on each side of the breathing apparatus. He hands it to her and she looks at it mesmerized.

“There’s a drastic change if I’ve ever seen any” Attari says as he and Kylo step inside. Kylo just leers at her changed appearance, without saying anything.

“We’ll head out as soon as night comes. Rey you will lead us to his location, and you and I will go find Sunny and get him out. Wyatt and Kylo will take care of the filth.”

…

Auburn Ren has been in Theed for a standard week already and she is no less aggravated at Kylo Ren that she was after she had left the Finalizer. How could he! She and Sunny haven’t been separated for this long…well ever.

And her “mission” sucks. Infiltrate the Resistance. Find their weakness. Blah blah blah! There was no Resistance to speak of, just a few disillusioned souls spread out throughout Naboo. Kind of a bullshit task for a Knight of Ren, unworthy of her talents.

Be that as it may, she wouldn’t dare disobey Kylo Ren. And she gets to spend some time planet side on one of her favorite places in the Galaxy. Growing up among the wealthy elite on Coruscant had given her much in terms of luxury, but being able to enjoy nature undisturbed was not a possibility.

She had visited Naboo with her parents as a child and she had immediately loved the rolling plains with their lush greenery, flagrant flowers and trees as far as the eyes could see. The lakes and waterfalls were incredible; the scenery took her breath away when she had landed just the same as they had when she was just a child.

Kylo Ren had given her all the intelligence he had acquired pertaining to the whereabouts of the Resistance; a hand full were stationed in Theed, including their new leader, General Poe Dameron. The rest were somewhere in the lake country. There were no mentions of the Jedi. They were such an insignificant group at this point, why did Kylo even bother to keep any tabs on them. Still, even with her reservations, she did as she was bid.

She “found” gainful employment at the Palace, as one of Queen Mirexjya’s hand maidens. Kylo had arranged it for her. No one is aware that the Queen and the Supreme Leader have been friends as children, when Ben Solo and his senator mother had come to visit their family properties.

Kylo had never taken advantage of their friendship, Naboo is very much neutral territory as far as the conflict between the First Order and the Resistance. In reality, the Queen had offered the Resistance shelter and support in secret and turned around to feed that information to Kylo Ren. Not someone Auburn would be inclined to trust, all things being considered.

And so she’s spent the last week by the Queen’s side, attending endless meetings and functions, her only role was to stand behind the queen as part of her security team.  Why they have still wearing these elaborate costume dresses, posing as hand maidens is beyond her understanding; clearly their only purpose is to be the Queen’s security detail. She has actual servants doing everything else for her. But that is the tradition and it was not her place to question it.

Even if every one of the Knights thinks of her as a brat, she knows when to act like it – never around people who are not her kin.

This morning had gone the same as every other day; they began their day with a lavish breakfast, followed by a leisurely walk through the palace gardens, followed by the meeting with the delegation from Coruscant. What she had fully expected to be a ponderous political meeting had turned into an all-out shit show!

From what she had gathered from the heated dialogue, the economic council of Coruscant had demanded Naboo to sign off on the plasma mining accord and that Naboo allow them the use the underwater trade routes unrestricted for the operation.

The population of Naboo had not wanted such an arrangement; plasma was a natural resource on Naboo but they had always extracted it responsibly. The operation Coruscant was proposing involved the development of mines being trenched to reach the planet’s core and with that the disturbance of the planet’s environment and wild life. Moreover, allowing them to use the underwater trade routes to transport the raw plasma was exposing the aquatic environment to possible leaks and contamination. Because Coruscant had not been able to demonstrate how they would ensure this damage would not occur, the Queen and her advisors had declined signing the agreement.

The representatives from Coruscant struck her as odd; they were unpolished and uncouth, not the type of individuals she expected to see on a diplomatic mission. Then again, Naboo’s refusal will be costing them billions of credits.

The talks derailed to the point where the delegates from Coruscant had given an ultimatum: either Naboo signed the agreement or Coruscant would ban all consumer goods imported from Naboo, an economic disaster for the small planet should it come to take place.

They offered up their terms and stormed out, giving the Queen two standard days to come up with the right answer.

Queen Mirexjya had asked everyone to clear the room, everyone but Auburn whom she addressed as soon as they had privacy”

“Why is the Supreme Leader doing this to us Auburn? Have I not proven as a worthy ally to him?”

“Your highness, I honestly do not believe this is on his orders. What makes you think otherwise?”

“Cut the shit! Coruscant is under the control of the First Order. Kylo Ren is the Supreme Leader of said Order. There is no way Coruscant is making this decision without their backing. So I ask again – why?”

“Mirexjya, he hasn’t said anything to us about it, you know why I’m here, it has nothing to do with a trade dispute. This isn’t his style though, you know this; he would come to you directly, he’s not one for political subtleties or intrigue.”

“If that’s the case, he might be in trouble. Whoever holds Coruscant’s strings, holds a lot of power in the Galaxy. If someone is operating from inside the First Order without Kylo Ren’s approval or knowledge, his days as Supreme Leader are numbered. Coruscant doesn’t do anything without First Order support, as much as they like to present a neutral front to the Galaxy.”

“I need to warn him”

“Do that. But I need your help with this too, I cannot let my people fall into this economic catastrophe. I have a plan that could benefit both our purposes.”

The door opened to allow a man inside. He was fairly tall – but most beings are tall compared to all five feet of her – he had a beautiful head of dark curls, with hints of grey, an athletic built and as he got closer she noticed his chiseled face, full lips and dark eyes that seemed to sparkle under a thicket of long, black lashes. _Well, well! This day just got interesting!_ She thought to herself, holding back her smile.

“Ah, right on time!” Mirexjya waved him in with a smile.

“General Dameron. This is Auburn, one of my most trusted hand maidens and friend”

_Oh, very interesting indeed._

The Queen continued as Auburn and the general bowed their heads towards each other. “You have no doubt heard about what has happened during the talks with Coruscant, Rumors around here are like wild fire.”

“Yes your highness. I heard they’re trying to squeeze the plasma deal out you with any means necessary”

“I need you two to work together and find out the real motivations behind this. And any information that would tip the scales in our favour; as things stand right now, we have no leverage on them and they know it. “

“You want me to spy on the Coruscant delegation.” Dameron answered in a flat tone.

“Think of it as research. A favour to me”

She had him and he knew it. She had taken a huge risk in letting the resistance hide out planet fall and she was cashing in on it now.

“Why do I need the girl?” he angled his chin towards her and Auburn felt immediately irritated, scowling. _Why the fuck do I need this rebel has-been?_

“You need each other’s …talents…to be successful” Mirexjya had answered them both. “Poe you’re an excellent strategist and marksman, but Auburn here is very adept at extracting information, usually without the individual being aware they are being interrogated. This can’t be traced back to me; if I get accused of spying on diplomats it will be political suicide”.

He runs his fingers through his dark curls in what seems to be frustration, but he nods his head towards the Queen in agreement. “Let’s get started then” he says looking at Auburn.

For the first time in a while, she has to use her Force abilities to read someone. His body language gives nothing away. But she’s rusty and can’t do anything without making him keenly aware of her intentions to scour through his mind. _Challenge accepted Poe Dameron._

She bows to the Queen and they both leave the throne room in silence.

Just then, she feels it. A disturbance in the Force. She can feel excruciating pain radiating through her body and then an emptiness hollowing her chest, leaving her breathless, bile pooling in the back of her throat.

 Something has happened to one of her brothers, where there were always six lights in the back of her consciousness, only five remained strong, the sixth was merely a flicker.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much for coming back!! I'm sorry I don't have a specific update schedule but next week I will be back to living in a hotel room so there will be more to come!  
> your comments and messages are so amazing, like fuel!
> 
>  
> 
> Come say hi on Tumblr @riaria84 and on instagram @riacostec
> 
> I hear there is such a thing as a "beta" to read and fix my horrible grammar but until I find such a wonderful human, please forgive me!


	23. Chapter 23

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's no rest for the wicked

She needs to get a grip before flyboy starts asking questions that she has no intention to answer.

“I need a few minutes to change Dameron, I’ll meet you in about an hour at your suite?”

“Sure” is all he responded, flatly, seemingly unsettled by her bristly tone. She doesn’t have time to deal with his gently bruised ego right now.

She rushes to her own quarters, calling the commlink to her with the Force as soon as she gets inside. First off – Sunny Ren.

She punches in the code and holds her breath as she waits. Nothing. She goes through the same steps another half dozen times, with the same infuriating result.

_He’s probably meditating._

She’s trying, very unsuccessfully, to talk herself down from complete panic.

Her attempts to contact Wyatt and Attari yielded the same result, causing the knot in her stomach to tighten.

Finally, she is able to reach Alix Ren. Alix and C’mmaron were having an apparently uneventful trip so far on Lothal. They both had also felt the disturbance and were just as concerned as she was, equally unsuccessful at contacting any of the other Knights or Kylo.

“Keep trying and let me know if you hear anything; I’ll do the same on my end” she said as Alix closed the communication.

She’s beyond dread at this point but she needs to get control of her emotions before meeting with the General.  All she wants to do is get back on her ship and find her brothers.

Having to spend an undetermined amount of time with Poe Dameron is grating on her nerves. He was inexplicably cocky, considering he was a general over maybe two dozen troops, the Resistance being all but annihilated and close to being irrelevant to the rest of the galaxy at this point in time.

He’s handsome to be sure and he knows it. It’s very unlikely that he has ever been refused by a woman in his life and that is probably why he’s strutting around like he owns the place.

She can’t let herself be distracted with these kinds of inane notions; she has a job to do.

What is Coruscant up to? It doesn’t make any sense for them to push so hard for the plasma treaty; there are other planets rich with plasma and minimally inhabited that they could exploit for the resource without leaving themselves exposed politically.

Auburn considered two options: that it was either the underground routes they were after or the actual unrest the trade embargo on Naboo would cause in the galaxy. If that was the case, they were banking on Naboo’s refusal of their terms. _But why??_

Naboo was recognized as a perpetual neutral territory in most galactic conflicts and a friendly trading partner for everyone. They had never posed a military threat, instead offering safe haven for war refugees and the oppressed. They spoke out against slavery and were ambassadors for fair wages, equal rights for all species and demilitarization. While their philosophies went against every belief the First Order held, they were respected by the rest of the galaxy. It didn’t make sense for Coruscant to make this move; they would be causing dissent amongst Naboo’s allies and their own.

If the First Order is truly behind this, why would they be putting their biggest unofficial ally in such a precarious situation? Kylo’s silence on the matter is making her think he is not aware of this brewing conflict and if the First Order is driving this behind his back, his days as Supreme Leader were indeed numbered, as the Queen had said earlier.

She needed to warn him. At the very least she needed him to be aware of everything she had witnessed and her suspicions. She doesn’t try to contact him directly, not wanting to deal with his wrath at her recent insubordinate behavior. Instead, she records a holo and sends it to his ship, for him to retrieve later. Before she ends her recording, she adds “Master, I apologize for the way I acted. I know you always have good reasons for the decisions you make. I umm…I felt a disturbance in the Force and I know you felt it too. I’ll wait to hear from you. May the Force be with you, and all of us”.

She knew he would forgive her childish behavior, he always did. Deep down he is very indulgent of all the Knights, and he shows them his love in his own way.

It’s almost time to meet the General but before anything else, she needs to ditch this ridiculous piece of architecture of a dress the Queen had her parading around in this entire week. It’s gold, unnecessarily ornate and billowy, with long, wide sleeves and a heavy hood that cloaked most of her face. She did enjoy the relative anonymity the outfit provided, but it was far from comfortable.

One aspect of this mission she didn’t mind was being able to wear some of the extensive wardrobe she has amassed throughout the years. As disciplined as the Knights are, they all have vices they indulge once in a while. Wyatt loved his wine, C’mmaron and Alix dabbled with smoking the blue grass, Attari gambled on everything he could find and Sunny enjoyed the occasional death stick. Her weakness was fashion and she spent all her credits on clothing, cosmetics and of course countless pairs of shoes.

She removed her elaborate outfit and opted for a pair of black leather pants, a tight sky-blue silk short- sleeve top with a deep V-neck, and a grey suede jacket. Her saber fits into the custom pocket she had sown into the lining of the jacket. And her absolute favorite pair of knee-length black leather boots, with a practical four-inch heel. She never gets to wear heels; she never really gets to wear any of these clothes so these few moments of playing dress-up serves as a temporary distraction.

She frees her strawberry blonde hair from the tight knot she’s been wearing since she’s arrived on Naboo and lets it flow in gentle waves around her face. She gives herself a cursory glance in the mirror before she leaves her room, satisfied with what she sees.

The steady clicking of her heels on the marble floor shortly finds her standing in front of Poe Dameron’s apartment where she knocks, waiting. The door opens and he’s standing in front of her, eyes wide and mouth slightly gaped at her transformed appearance.

“Lady Auburn. Come in”.

“Just Auburn. Trust me, I’m no lady” she giggles as she walks past him inside his room and takes a seat on the sofa.

He’s showing all the signs she recognizes by now: rapid heartbeat, dilated pupils, quickened breaths. _That’s more like it Dameron._ She smirks, as she looks at him, the knowledge of having him caught in her web giving her a brief high.

_Let the games begin._

***

The sun was close to rising on Jedha, everything tranquil, unmoving under the shadow of night. Everything except the four dark figures approaching the shelter hidden in the rock formation.

Rey could feel her heart pounding in her chest, the adrenaline coursing through her making every cell in her body aware and awake.

She couldn’t feel anything from the Knights or their Master, but the Force around them was sparking with heavy tension.

Attari made his way inside easily, opening the steel door without a sound. Rey followed close behind, taking just a moment to glance back at the two men they were leaving outside, giving them a slight nod with her head.

The dwelling is dark with damp, thick air weighing heavy on her chest. She discovered immediately that the mask does absolutely nothing for the smell.

Attari ensures the area ahead of them is clear and lets her take the lead.

Rey could sense the Force user was near, the golden tendril she had followed to guide her here was taught, close to the end of the line. She can almost pull herself to him, picking up the pace with the Knight in tow.

They stop in front of another heavy metal door, which she opens carefully to reveal what was at some point a detention cell. It was much darker and dirtier than the one Kylo had interrogated her in.

In the corner directly across from them they could see a heap of black fabric on the ground, tethered to a medical monitoring apparatus via several intravenous tubes.

“Sunny?” Attari whispered as he approached the unconscious man. “I can’t feel any bleeding or broken bones. They’re drugging him with some very strong sedatives”.

“That’s probably why you couldn’t feel him in the Force, it’s just a flicker.

“Sunny? Buddy can you hear me? We’re getting you out of here.” Attari rips the IVs out of his arms.

“Rey, I need your help. I won’t be able to carry him on my own. I need to use the Force and I need you to lead the way. Be very keen of any movement”. This isn’t the time to show her indignation towards Attari talking to her like she was a child. She’s seen her share of combat at this point. She’d found her way inside Starkiller base pretty easily.

Now she can feel the Knight through the Force. His presence is strong, mostly dark but there is some light interwoven in his signature. She is always open to the Force, but it flows through her as it pleases. Attari is asking it for help, bending it to his will to support the unconscious man he’s carrying draped over his shoulders. The Force doesn’t resist; it answers them both immediately and generously, her senses are sharp and focused.

She leads the way back to the heavy door they came through and she lets out a small sigh of relief when she finds Wyatt Ren standing on the other side of the door.

“That was easy” he whispers out of the mask. He’s right, it was easy. Too easy and she can feel the Force doing that _thing_ it does when it tries to give her a warning. Her breath hitches and all her muscles tense immediately, but once more, too late.

“Supreme Leader Ren, what a pleasant surprise”.

The saccharine voice is coming from the ridge above where Kylo is standing, where the four of them were crouched not that long ago.

As she watches, frozen in fear, the entire crest becomes alive with masked individuals. They are surrounding them on three sides.

Some of the masks are the same ones she’s seen the kanjiclub thugs wear when they attacked the Falcon; some of the masks were the same white ones that gave her endless nights of nightmares – stormtroopers!

“What is the meaning of this? Stand down immediately or you risk being severely punished and reprogrammed” Kylo commands in a steady voice, not giving anything he is feeling away.

“Those are strong words coming from a traitor, Kylo Ren” the same voice spits out the name venomously.

“Give yourself up now and face your fate at the hands of the true Supreme Leader and he may spare your band of zealots from death. Fight us and you will all surely perish”.

Attari places his unconscious friend on the ground, leaning him against the wall and stands next to Wyatt and Rey. Whoever this is has clearly not had much experience with Force users. If they were normal people, four against maybe four dozen would mean certain defeat. But they were not normal people.

Kylo looks at her and tosses her the saber she found the day before on the floor of the ancient Jedi temple.

She stands behind him, Attari and Wyatt flanking each of his sides. The three bow their heads towards each other in understanding and Kylo turns to face the voice.

“Come get me then” he says as he lights his saber.

Their minds are fully open to each other, as they open themselves to the Force, the darkness swirling. The prayer is recited silently, their voices united. Rey can feel the darkness flowing through her, suffocating the light but giving her clarity in her purpose, filling her to the brim with raw power.

She couldn’t feel fear or panic any longer. There was only the fight. There was only survival. It was just them.

They all ignited their sabers simultaneously; Rey was amazed to see they all had double-sided ones, blood red, humming with anticipation.

The attackers seemed to be taken aback at the sight of them, clearly not expecting four of them.

The voice seemed confident still, giving the order to attack.

All four dropped to their defensive crouches, legs spread and weight evenly distributed, sabers behind ready to strike.

The rabble advances down the slope, blasters drawn, beginning to fire.

Rey finds it easy to deflect the blasts using the Force, even though she’s never practiced it before. It’s another one of Kylo’s skills she’s absorbed and never accessed until now.

Attari and Wyatt split the sabers in half, leaving them with a weapon in each hand. They attack while Rey deflects the blasts. The men are a fearsome sight to behold, gracefully slashing through several attackers at the same time as if they were participants in a well-rehearsed dance.

As the horde gets closer and closer, she knows she will soon have to fight some of them one on one. But she is ready; the saber feels like her staff, she can wield it just as easily, twirling it in her hand while her other hand is still clutching the air, stopping the blasts and sending them back to their owners.

She can see Kylo using the Force to freeze their enemies in place, giving Attari and Wyatt the opportunity to slash through them like a hot knife through butter. Technically, four hot knives.

Rey bares her teeth inside her mask and lets out a feral scream, charging some of the oncoming aggressors.

She slashed through the first two with one flick of the wrist, her nostrils filling with the scent of scorched flesh and blood. She cut down the next six just as easily, her stance wide, inviting them to come after her.

She relished how she felt, the blood lust flooding all her senses. She continues cutting a path through the assailants who are now backtracking, some in full out sprints as they were running away. None of them would see another day.

The last two in her path she’s caught up with easily enough. They were stormtroopers. She slashed through one’s spine as she kicked the other in the back, bringing him to his knees.

“Don’t you fucking move scum. If you want to live you will do exactly as I tell you”. She was slightly startled at the sound of her voice through the modulator; she sounded bigger, mean and dangerous. She decided to take him prisoner and interrogate him later. They needed to find out who was behind this.

She turns off her saber and pulls the trooper up to his feet.

“Move” she says and nudges him in the back with her weapon.

Rey can see the three Knights standing, Wyatt removing his mask looking around as Attari walks to where Sunny was still resting against the side of the building. There were no attackers left and the entire fight had maybe taken them fifteen minutes. She was panting, drenched in sweat, feeling the adrenaline return as the dark wave receded slowly.

Kylo begins walking towards her, shutting off his saber. “You were unbelievable” he says and even through the mask, his voice sounds incredibly sexy, the low timbre covering her entire body in goosebumps.

The Force is still erratic around them, out of balance because of the lives they had just taken. But no there’s something else; that sense of warning was still there, there was still danger.

Rey and Kylo turn at the same time, their realization just an instant too late.

“NO!” they both shout as the blaster bolt catches Wyatt in the abdomen, bringing him to his knees. The light in him was fading fast as he lost consciousness.

Rey can taste bile in her mouth, her vision tunneling, rage erupting in waves. She moves out of instinct, freezing the shooter and lighting her saber in the same motion, slicing through him. It’s not enough.

She turns to where Kylo is holding the prisoner and she runs toward him. She will end him. She will end all of them, hunt them down to the ends of the galaxy, until their blood debts are paid ten times over.

Just before she reaches the prisoner, she’s stopped in her tracks, as if she hit an invisible wall.

“We need this one alive” she whips her head around to see the Knight they had rescued walk over, towering over the others, then crouching down next to her dying brother who was lying in a pool of his own blood.

“Let go of the dark girl. It’s the only hope he’s got” Sunny said to her, but the words sounded like a whisper, far away into the night.

But she couldn’t; the dark was comforting her, it was cradling her in her misery and it demanded vengeance.

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A massive THANK YOU to my wonderful beta Emily! You'll be able to see a huge uptick on the quality of the grammar and she is the only reason for it!
> 
> Also...don't hate me! All is as the Force Wills it!
> 
> love you guys, your comments and your kudos are amazing and thanks to everyone who have reached out on Tumblr!  
> You can find me deep in the trash heap, re-blogging all things Reylo @riaria84


	24. Chapter 24

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There is no medicine like hope.

They had opened themselves up to the Force during the fight, all their thoughts and emotions lain bare to the surface, to be witnessed by the others. No one took advantage and no one pried.

Their focus had been singular: protect, fight, survive.

He had been utterly mesmerized by Rey, by her ability to assume their skills and give herself over to the Force without hesitation and fight without holding anything back.

He was so distracted by her graceful fearlessness and raw command of the dark side that he had not felt the last of their enemies approaching until it was too late.

Seeing Wyatt brought to his knees by something as trivial as a blaster bolt was jarring; Kylo blamed himself for not seeing it, for being too taken with Rey. He felt guilty and disheartened as he saw Wyatt’s presence in the Force diminish.

Sunny Ren had regained consciousness. Even though the sedatives given to him were still coursing through his system, his presence in the Force had re-established itself not a moment too soon.

He was the most proficient healer of the Knights of Ren, the most knowledgeable of the ways of the Force and they all looked to him as a spiritual leader. Kylo was the most powerful Force user but always had little regard for the light side or the skills relying heavily on its use.

Sunny was the only hope Wyatt Ren had at the moment.

“Let go of the dark girl. It’s the only hope he’s got” he had spoken to Rey gently as he was keeping her still with a Force hold, but she didn’t acknowledge the words.

“Master, you have to get her back to a balanced state of mind. She’s pulling too much darkness towards her, she’s twisting the planet’s energy towards the dark.” Sunny continues to keep Rey still with the Force, crouched next to Wyatt.

“The planet…What?” Sunny’s words confused Kylo and Attari.

“I can explain later. Whoever this girl is, she’s strong with the Force and Jedha itself is reacting to her presence. I don’t need to tell you that it isn’t going splendidly right now.  I need her balanced to help me heal Wyatt Ren. He’s fading fast. He won’t make it off this planet unless we can stop the damage immediately.”

As her own brother would say so eloquently, Rey had completely lost her shit at this point. She made no efforts to shield her mind, letting all her emotions whirl openly. The dark side had enveloped her entirely and she was wallowing in it, letting it take over, guiding her movements.

She was rabid, single mindedly focused on her purpose – vengeance. That prisoner had to die, and nothing but his blood on her hands would satisfy her need.

Kylo needed to get a hold of Rey before she could break Sunny’s Force grip. As powerful as he is, Rey’s own natural abilities in the Force surpassed any of the Knights of Ren; on top of that, she had access to all of his training and skills.

He takes a couple of steps toward her and tentatively places a hand on her back, between her shoulder blades but she doesn’t seem to notice.

“Rey? Let go of the dark. Don’t go this way, come back to me sweetheart.” But there was no reaction, her wild eyes darting back and forth from the prisoner to Sunny Ren.

He needed to do something fast. Kylo takes off his gloves and steps in front of her, tossing his mask to the side. He removes hers as well, throwing it to the ground and places both his bare hands on her cheeks, touching his forehead to hers. He then whispers against her lips, the kiss barely touching her.

“Let go Rey. Look at me. Please.”

She closes her eyes finally, as large tears streak her alabaster cheeks. Rey lets out a long sigh and collapses with painful sobs into Kylo’s arms, clutching his tunic around his shoulder blades as Sunny releases the Force hold.

“Just don’t” Attari responds to the many questions Sunny was waiting to inquire.

“Later then?”

“Yah, get in line brother” Attari continues to respond in his snarky tone as he also crouches next to Wyatt, trying to stabilize him.

“Girl, come closer please” Sunny requests without turning from Wyatt’s side.

Rey pulls herself away from Kylo’s embrace, wipes her eyes and nose with the back of her arm and walks toward the Knights.

Sunny faces her with his kind eyes and gives her a smile of encouragement. “I have studied healing, but this wound is too serious for me to take on by myself. I need you to help me.” He and Attari begin divesting the fallen Knight of his clothing.

“How?”

“I just need you to calm your thoughts, gather the light around you and open your mind to me, so I can tap into your power.”

“Like a battery pack?”

“Exactly right Jedi.”

Of course he had recognized her as soon as she was unmasked. Her face was plastered all over the First Order’s propaganda.

And what was that fucking ginger cunt up to now? Kylo needed to figure out what exactly it was that Hux had put out in terms of communication. For troopers and mercenary filth to attack him in the open and call him a traitor was suicidal. Unless they had information giving them the confidence to make such brash decisions.

“Kylo Ren, I need you to focus also, your emotions are echoing in the Force.”

Kylo nodded and focused his mind on Wyatt. He and Attari didn’t need to do anything but keep from tipping to the dark. He then said the words.

“I am one with the Force, the Force is with me. I do not fear. All is as the Force wills it.”

The Force around them calmed, like a storm dying out in the middle of the ocean, its swells of darkness eased into gentle waves.

As Rey was focusing on the light, Kylo could feel Sunny dipping into the tremendous power she was wielding, wrapping it around Wyatt Ren like a cocoon. The damaged organs and tissues began mending, the fibers in his body responding to the will of the Force, his wound closing and scarring slowly. Painfully slowly…

They have been at this for hours now.

As his body healed, Kylo could feel Wyatt’s presence becoming more established, forceful.

He was finally stable, breathing on his own, a gruesome pink scar was all that remained of his wound. It resembled the bowcast scar on Kylo’s side.

Kylo felt a sense of peace he hadn’t experienced in some time. Sunny Ren’s healing through the light of the Force had not only mended Wyatt’s body, but also relieved a minuscule portion of his emotional turmoil.

Rey and Attari appeared to be just as serene; the emotions they were projecting through the Force were tranquil and peaceful.

“He’s stable but he will be out of it for some time still. And he needs a ton of bacta treatment” Sunny finally stood up and spoke.

“You need to rest up too Sunny Ren, you aren’t exactly the model of health right now” Attari patted his friend on the back as he stood next to him.

“We all need to rest. This week has kicked the absolute fuck out of me and I still get to deal with whatever the fuck Hux has been up to since I’ve been gone.”

“They called you a traitor!” Rey startles at the memory.

“That word gets thrown around so arbitrarily these days around the First Order” Kylo half jokes. It’s not funny but he’s so relieved that Sunny is alright, Wyatt has come back from the brink and Rey hadn’t been entirely consumed by the dark side. It’s almost a win.

“We need to get back to the ships. I refuse to spend another night in this shit hole” Sunny didn’t curse often but it made sense. He was drugged, beaten and left to rot in a disgusting holding cell.

Attari steps toward the structure, rubbing the back of his head pensively “There should be some speeders inside this place or something remotely similar, there’s no way those little shits just dragged you here.”

He was right. They found three X-34 landspeeders dumped unceremoniously in one of the storage bays of the old construction.

“What a heap of trash!” Attari scoffed and Kylo agreed.  These will do. They only had to take them back to their ships.

Sunny boarded first. Attari followed with Wyatt carefully tucked in front of him. Rey climbed into the same speeder as Kylo, sitting on his lap, nestling herself between his legs. He didn’t need to look to understand the glances Attari and Sunny were giving each other.

“What do we do with this asshole?” Attari pointed to the prisoner Kylo had placed into a Force sleep earlier.

“Looks like you drew the short stick Sunny” Kylo said with a smirk, wrapping an arm around Rey’s waist.

He sighed into Rey’s hair and took off; he would’ve had to come clean with them eventually, might as well get it over with.

Although the speeders only hovered about a meter off the ground, they moved fast.

Almost too fast for Kylo’s liking; he was very much enjoying the position he’d found himself in just now, with Rey squished right up against him, her bottom placed in the perfect spot allowing every jolt of the speeder along the way to apply delicious pressure to his groin.

He knew she felt it too as her body was tense but not necessarily from the stress of the day. She was pressing herself against him, running her hands gently down his thighs. He pressed his face into the back of her head and gently nipped at her ear. Her body answered with a shiver and she rolled her hips into him, causing a significant amount of his blood to pool in the same area immediately.

“Unless you’re ready for me to fuck you right here, right now, little Jedi, you better start behaving.”

She didn’t say anything but her giggle sent another rush of blood to his nether regions.

They were back where the two transports and Tie Silencer were parked.

Sunny unceremoniously dumps the comatose prisoner out of the speeder and moves to help Attari carry Wyatt Ren into Kylo’s Upsilon.

Rey hops off Kylo’s lap and goes to follow, but turns around giving him a sideways glance. “Coming?”

“I um…need a second.” Kylo needed to get a grip over the massive erection he was currently sporting before he stepped in front of the firing squad. Not in the literal sense, of course.

As he walked inside, he found the med-droid they had stowed away before leaving Hoth, as well as the first aid kits Wyatt had brought with him. He also discovered that the Knights had laid Wyatt down in his bed. He’s trying not to be selfish, but damn it! He was looking forward to finally being able to get a good night’s sleep and now he gets to cram himself into a bunk.

_Why the fuck are all these beds so tiny? Isn’t this a custom made transport? Customized…for me? Apparently not._

Rey and Attari are applying bacta gel all over Wyatt’s injury. Sunny is instructing the droid on the tests to run for him, Attari and Wyatt.  Kylo stands there feeling useless, the exhaustion of the past week settling in.

He moves to the cockpit and grudgingly decides to check incoming communications. He knows there’s very little chance of any good news as he watches the small red bulb blink furiously.

The first message is from Alix Ren, concerned about the Force disturbance she and C’mmaron experienced. The next communication was Auburn’s holo recording.

He was troubled at her news regarding Coruscant’s pressure and ultimatum given to Naboo. She was right to warn him. Coruscant never did anything without the backing of the First Order and it is clear that the First Order is no longer under his control. They will have to deal with this soon, before a galactic conflict ensues.

Somehow though, he doesn’t regret the choices that have led to this moment because they led him to Rey.

The final message is another holo recording.

_Force, that man has a face not even a mother could love._

General Hux was standing in front of the First Order banners, smirking with his hands clasped behind his back.

_“Today, I bring you the most disturbing news. As of today, Kylo Ren, also known in some circles as Ben Solo, has proven himself to be a traitor to the First Order!_

_As he took up the mantle of Supreme Leader under suspect circumstances, Ren was also acting as the leader of a highly dangerous terrorist faction known as the Knights of Ren. These individuals are exceptionally violent, driven by extremist religious convictions, seeking to bring the Galaxy to its knees, inciting unrest and sabotaging the operations of the First Order._

_The individual seen in the security footage to follow is known as Attari Ren. He can be clearly seen breaching into a highly secured area of the Finalizer and engaging into an act of espionage, retrieving classified information from the First Order’s research and development division._

_We believe Kylo Ren conspired with the Resistance Jedi known as Rey of Jakku to murder our Supreme Leader Snoke, on the orders of his mother, the late General Leia Organa Solo of the Resistance._

_We cannot stand idly by and allow this group of extremist maniacal individuals to spread their message of hate, fear and anarchy throughout the Galaxy._

_As the new Supreme Leader of the First Order, I declare each of the following individuals enemies of the Order and offer generous rewards for any information leading to their capture, dead or alive. And a warning – any individuals, governments or planetary systems found to aid and abet these criminals will be dealt the same swift justice as these villains.”_

The screen flashes through shots of their faces that Hux had obviously obtained on the day they arrived on the Finalizer:

Attari Ren – last known location: The Finalizer -  Wanted (Dead or Alive) – Reward offered: 250,000 credits;

Wyatt Ren – Wanted (Dead or Alive) last known location – Cloud City, Bespin – Reward offered: 250,000 credits;

Sunny Ren – whereabouts unknown - Wanted (Dead or Alive) – Reward offered: 250,000 credits;

C’mmaron Ren – whereabouts unknown - Wanted (Dead or Alive) – Reward offered: 250,000 credits;

Alix Ren – whereabouts unknown - Wanted (Dead or Alive) – Reward offered: 250,000 credits;

Auburn Ren – whereabouts unknown – Wanted (Alive) – Reward offered: 500,000 credits;

Rey of Jakku (a.k.a. the Jedi) – Wanted (Dead or Alive) – Reward offered: 1,000,000 credits;

Kylo Ren (a.k.a. Ben Solo) – Wanted (Dead or Alive) – Reward offered 5,000,000 credits.

 

The recording ends and Kylo stands there, seething, although not entirely surprised.

“So, why is Auburn Ren wanted _alive_ and worth a larger finders’ fee than us?” Sunny asks as he’s standing in the door way, Attari and Rey behind him.

 

“Hux wants her, probably thinks he can keep her as his concubine or some other fucked up version of a girlfriend he has floating in that crazy mind.”

 

“Well, I have to say, it feels nice to no longer be number one on the First Order’s shit list” Rey says with a slight smirk as the Knights turn to eye her with curiosity.

 

“Like a real Jedi, always seeing the silver lining” he teases her.

 

“So where to now? Clearly we can’t go to the Cloud City since they will be searching for Wyatt high and low.”

 

“Sunny, honestly, after this piece of cinematography gets broadcasted all over the Galaxy, as I assume it already has, we will have nowhere to go.” Attari is gloomy and has every right to be.

 

“There is one place” Kylo says with a slight smile and the Knights pick up his meaning right away, slight relief permeating through them.

 

“We need a good night sleep first.” He’s beyond tired at this point, too tired to care about cramming himself in the tiny bunk.

 

“I have some questions before we leave this cozy situation” Sunny clearly wasn’t going let this go, and neither was Attari judging by the twinkle in his eyes.

 

“Can I give you an abbreviated version and tell you the full story at a time where I’m not dying from lack of sleep?”

 

“Ok, but more detail than Wyatt gave me” Attari pipes up. Why does it feel like he’s dealing with teenagers again? It hasn’t escaped his attention that Rey had made a quick exit when their prodding had started. Smart girl.

 

“What do you want to know? She’s the Jedi. Natural abilities in the Force, trained by Luke Skywalker and yours truly through a Force bond. She helped me kill Snoke. She stole the Jedi texts from Luke. I went to Hoth so she and I could break the bond but she ended up somehow getting trapped in an avalanche. I called on Wyatt to help me save her. Through a Force touch vision they found out that they are brother and sister, then we got your call and here we are.”

 

“Brother and sister?!”

 

“You trained her?!”

 

They shouted at the same time. “Yes and yes, but inadvertently. I tried to get into her mind and gained instant access to her memories but she also could access all of mine, all my skills, all my thoughts.”

 

“So ok, so you downloaded your mind into hers and then she tried to murder you. So why would she help you kill Snoke, exactly?” a question he had asked himself in many moments of doubt.

 

“I should’ve mentioned that the Force bond linked our minds together and we started appearing to each other in the Force, shortly after Starkiller base was destroyed. Sometimes, in the most awkward of circumstances. Once we started talking, we understood each other. She came to the Supremacy of her own free will. To …to save me I guess?”

 

“Ah, a ‘save Ben Solo’ plan to save the Resistance” Attari scoffed.

 

“Indeed.”

 

“So how did that turn into murdering Snoke, taking up as Supreme Leader and hunting down the Resistance to pieces?”

 

“I thought Snoke would be pleased with her abilities, maybe turn her into a second apprentice. But instead he tortured her and was going to have me kill her ‘with the cruelest stroke’ as he put it” Kylo sighs as he thinks of that day. “I killed Snoke with Anakin’s light saber that Rey brought with her. She helped me kill the Praetorian Guard. Now that you’ve seen what she can do when she taps into the Force, it doesn’t seem that unlikely of a scenario that a girl could best such fierce warriors, does it?”

 

“She is unbelievably strong” Sunny remarks with awe. “I assume you acted like a total ass and she left? Some sort of ultimatum – me or them kind of thing?”

 

Kylo ground his teeth, he didn’t particularly enjoy being called out on his bullshit. “Something like that.”

 

“And then you decided to hunt her down and blow her and her friends out of the Galaxy. Shockingly, that made her upset with you?” He is not a fan of sarcasm on the best of days.

 

“If you guys want to tell the story go ahead!”

 

“Don’t get your knickers in a knot Kylo, go ahead and tell it. We can more or less fill in some of the blanks and speed things along.” Attari was also showing signs of exhaustion.

 

“You said you saved her from an avalanche? Wouldn’t it have been easier to just let her die, end the bond that way?”

 

“Now that you’ve met her Sunny, would you be able to let her die?”

 

“I wouldn’t, no. She is unbelievable actually now that you bring it up.” He could feel the gentle coils of jealousy tightening inside him, making him tense.

 

“Chill brother, I didn’t mean it in that way, although that reaction does answer a lot of questions I still had. You care for her. You care for her a lot.”

 

“I’m just going to come out and ask this – are you two fucking?” asked Attari Ren. Fearsome warrior and gossip monger.

 

“There is zero chance that she hasn’t heard this entire exchange, are you two ready to take her on?”

 

“That doesn’t answer the question Kylo.”

 

“No, of course we aren’t fucking. She’s a Jedi. And …she’s still a virgin.”

 

“And Wyatt Ren has been cock blocking you since he found out she’s his baby sister.”

 

“And that” the two Knights laugh as they notice him starting to blush. “Ok, are we done here?”

 

“Not even close! But I’m beat. My body is still trying to burn through whatever the fuck Hux’s men shot me with.” He forgot Attari had been drugged and imprisoned too. What a fucking week!

 

They walk out of the cockpit and the two knights enter the chamber where the bunk beds were housed. Kylo goes outside, brings in the unconscious trooper they had taken prisoner and secures him with bindings. He raises the ramp and locks the door.

 

Rey was already tucked into the bottom bunk.

 

Sunny settled into the other bottom bunk across the small isle.

 

“Fucking hell” neither he nor Attari much cared for the top bunk, although the Knight had clearly been too tired to say anything about it. Both Knights were asleep.  

 

Kylo looks at his bunk and takes off his coat and boots, tossing them on the pile already on the floor, when he feels her hand reach for his and tug him into the bunk. “Sleep with me” she whispered.

 

He squished in next to her, savoring every inch of her skin that was touching his. He slid his left arm under her, so her head could rest in the crook of his neck. His other arm he draped lazily around her waist. He kissed her forehead gently, nuzzling his face in her hair.

 

“You smell bad” he whispered, making her giggle.

 

“Not as bad as you” and he barked a little laugh too.

 

“Could you be so kind as to cut this off at the dry humping phase, we have ears” Attari grumbles and Sunny laughs loudly.

 

“Fuck. Off.” He says and he leans in just a hair until he can kiss her softly on the lips. Neither of them pushed for more tonight, neither pulled away from the touch.

 

It was the best sleep Kylo had gotten since his first night on Hoth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys don't still want to kill me after yesterday's update :)  
> As always, thank you thank you thank you for all your comments, messages and kudos. It makes me so happy to see you guys love Wyatt and the rest of the KOR as much as I do, it really does fan my fire to write more.   
> And of course, thank you so much to the amazing Emily for being such a hard working beta!
> 
> Come say hi on Instagram @riacostec and on Tumblr @riaria84


	25. 25

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> *If you like Pina Colada, and getting caught in the rain*  
> Well, there's none of that in this chapter.  
> But there is smut! Be warned!  
> It starts the second part of the chapter. If it's not your thing, totally cool! Come back after chapter 26 ;)

The first thing she felt when she reentered consciousness was his breath on her face. It was hot and kind of stale. Really, he could strip paint with that breath if she was being honest, but she’s sure her own morning breath is not much better. He starts licking her face; he’s using so much of his tongue, he’s so erratic darting from her ears, her nose, her hair... _this is so fucking bizarre._

“Kylo what…?” She opens her eyes and to her surprise, and relief, she is met with a pair of happy black eyes. “Luna!” the vulptex is standing on her hind legs, her front paws on her bedside meeting her greeting with another happy lick.

She squints her eyes and her nose scrunches from the affectionate attention she’s receiving from the critter.

She takes inventory of her surroundings. She is squished up against Kylo Ren, her entire body wrapped around his torso like a pretzel. His arms are wrapped around her, palming her bottom, and his head is nestled into her chest. His hair is a tangled mess of curls, matted from the sweat of yesterday’s battle and sleep but she still reaches down to brush her hands through it.

He hums a happy noise, but he’s still pretty much asleep.

“I’m going to kill you little fucker!” Kylo’s angry half-sleep growl breaks their peace, although he doesn’t move. Rey lifts herself on her elbow and sees Max at the foot of the bunk, nipping at Kylo’s bare toes, baring his teeth and showing zero remorse for his actions.

Luna goes to investigate what he is doing, and shortly they break out into a rowdy play fight, tumbling around the floor in a ball of crystal.

“What is that ruckus?” she heard Sunny grumble out of his bunk, tossing around in his bed to face them and have a look in the direction of the noise. “It appears some sort of crystal critters broke in here and are resolving a conflict.”

“Oh. Well good, I thought they were going at it already.”

She doesn’t get the chance to say anything, because Kylo lazily unwraps one of his arms from around her bottom, raises it up, and uses the Force to do whatever it was that made Attari grunt in pain. _Serves him right_ she thinks as her eyes crinkle with silent laughter.

Kylo’s hand returns to where it was resting before. No one seems in any rush to get up this morning, although she should go check on Wyatt soon. She can feel him in the next room, his sleep healing his wounds.

Kylo squeezes Rey closer to his body, burying his face into her chest. He nuzzles her breasts with his face. She can feel his hot breath through the thin undershirt. This is going to happen, hopefully sooner rather than later. She is no longer conflicted about wanting this man.

Her conflict had never been about that though; she had always been attracted to him. Kylo is incredibly good looking and that body of his looked like it was chiseled out of marble. Giving in to those desires, opening herself to his darkness and fearing that it would overwhelm her was where her apprehension rested.  

She didn’t need to fear that after yesterday. She had been drowning in the darkness, letting it soothe her pain and envelop her misery with its promises of sweet revenge. Kylo had been the one to pull her out of it, with his sweet touch and his soft words. She had heard him as if he was far away in a dream, his voice echoing in her mind. His feather-light kiss had burned her back to consciousness.

She understood at last why someone would choose the dark side; it was not an easy choice. The dark offers an easy way out, it gives comfort through the removal of all inhibition and it seduces with its infinite permission.

If there is no one there to anchor you when that dark tide rises, it could be unavoidable to drift away and sink to the bottom of that black ocean.

Rey runs her fingers through Kylo’s hair again, and buries her face in his messy curls. She doesn’t want to break away from him, but they have so many things they need to deal with today. Hux had declared himself Supreme Leader of the First Order, denounced the Knights of Ren as terrorists and placed them on the same wanted list as her. Does this technically make them rebels now too?

“Technically, you’re not wrong Jedi Rey” Sunny answers and she wonders with chagrin when she had dropped her guard and let her thoughts roam freely again. Keeping secrets around this lot was proving to be difficult.

“Just Rey” she says as she makes eye contact with Sunny over Kylo’s head.

“Where is this corner of the Galaxy we’re heading to where no one knows who we are exactly? And please don’t say back to Hoth, I don’t think I can take another second on that frozen wasteland!”

Kylo disentangles himself reluctantly from her and he sits up on the edge of the bed, facing Sunny. Attari is also rolled to his side, peering at them from atop his bunk, ready to discuss the plan.

“We are not going back to Hoth Rey, don’t worry about that. We also can’t go to Bespin or Coruscant because of the First Order’s presence there. And if that’s not enough, Auburn informed me via holo that Coruscant is goading Naboo into an economic conflict; some bullshit about plasma mining and using the underwater routes for transport.”

“That makes little to no sense, Coruscant is risking conflict with all of Naboo’s allies…which are many” Attari added.

“No it doesn’t. Auburn is still in Theed for now, fairly safe, working undercover in the palace. She will keep an eye on the situation. Sunny, you should think about getting in touch with her. I mean I don’t mind, but I know she really wants to talk to you. I will contact Alix and C’mmaron and give them a heads up. I doubt anyone on Lothal has any idea about their presence there.”

Rey suddenly got the impression that he was keeping something from her, but it was too early in the day to explore that.

“We can’t go back to Cantonica because my face is all over the holo net and my parents’ business and home is probably watched carefully.” Rey had heard about Canto Bight from Finn and Rose’s stories. It sounded like such an incredibly insipid fake place. But also like quite a bit of fun if one’s morals weren’t overly rigid.

“The only place we can go where we will be relatively safe is Hanna City. But we will need a new ship to get there, something less recognizable.”

Similar to the Jedi, Luke Skywalker and Han Solo, Rey had always believed that Hanna City was myth. She’d heard stories of the Republic’s former capital on Chandrila but she didn’t believe that such a wonderful place existed.

“We’re going to the Core?” their attention pulled immediately to the doorway where Wyatt was standing. Other than the pale hue of his skin and his dry lips, he looked well. He was scared, but which of them wasn’t? Rey hopped out of the bunk and embraced him as tight as she could.

“Ouch. Take it easy kid, or you’ll have to patch me up again.”

She didn’t realize she was squeezing him in a vice grip. “Sorry Bro, I’m just so happy to see you on the mend! I thought I lost you, I couldn’t stomach it.” Her eyes began to tear up from the array of emotions she was experiencing. She would never lose him again. That was a promise she made herself last night.

The other Knights stand, waiting their turn to shake his hand and embrace him, patting him on the back.

“It’s good to see you up and about brother” Kylo says as he pats Wyatt on the shoulder. “There’s been a few developments. In a nut shell, we’re now known to the Galaxy as terrorists, Hux is the new Supreme Leader and Coruscant is cooking up a conflict with Naboo of all places.”

“Bloody hell! How long have I been out?” Wyatt exclaims with surprise.

“To be fair, some of the shit has been going on for most of the week. We just didn’t get wind of it until last night” Attari answers him.

“So. We’re going to the Core. My mother’s apartment has been uninhabited since she left but it has been well maintained.”

Rey winced as the mention of Leia flooded her with sadness and longing.

“We have to interrogate the trooper. We need to pop over to Corellia for a new ship. We need to find an explanation for what is happening to Jedha in terms of the new life we’ve seen. Not in that order.” That sounded like quite a bit of work to do.

Sunny sits back down on his bunk. “I can tell you what’s happening to Jedha. The kyber at the core of the planet is alive, it’s always been alive and it regenerated after the death star destroyed the surface layer. It healed itself and through that rebirth it conjured its own presence in the Force. It is strongest on the site of the Kyber Temple. I’m sure you felt it when you went down there.”

She had felt it; it was so strong it had practically called to her.

“Just like any other kyber crystal, Jedha chooses its owner. It seems to me, from the way the energy was reacting to your darkness yesterday, that Jedha has chosen you Rey.”

“Jedha _chose_ me.” She said arching an eyebrow suspiciously. “For what?”

“To defend it. This brings me to the reason I had called on you to come here in the first place Wyatt” he turns to face her brother. “The First Order is drilling for kyber here, just prospecting at this point but they are using slaves for their operations. Force sensitive slaves.”

“Why Force sensitives?” Attari chimes in. “Hux has an entire prisoner camp full of them down on Chandrilla, using them like test animals for the neurotoxin the First Order is developing.”

“They need the Force sensitives to locate the deeper kyber depositories. It’s fast, it’s cheap and it’s highly effective. Using a Force sensitive removes the guessing game. The First Order seems to have contracted out the supervision of the operations to Kanjiklub, to deny using slave labour.”

Rey can taste bitter rage now. Enslaving living beings and using them like they were animals for work and weapons testing was beyond despicable. It was unforgivable.

“I don’t understand why Hux needs all this kyber? There is no way he would be so foolish to engage in building another Death Star. But I also don’t see how developing a weaponized neurotoxin and this tie together.” Kylo was thinking out loud.

“Whatever he’s building, it won’t end well for the Galaxy at large if he’s allowed to bring his plans to fruition.” Wyatt sounded just as horrified as Rey felt.

“We best get moving. We’ll leave your transport and the TIE Silencer here but let’s keep them relatively out of sight. We’ll trade in this one for a new transport. We’ll interrogate that trooper once we get to Chandrila .” Kylo Ren, Master of the Knights of Ren spoke with authority and they all listened.

…

Their stop on Corellia was brief. Although the planet appeared to be heavily populated, Kor Vella was a trading post, its population mostly transient traders and peddlers.

They dealt with a Zabrak trader that Attari seemed to know well, likely an acquaintance from his days growing up in Canto Bight. It was more likely that he knew the man from one of the many illegal gambling operations Attari ran throughout the Core, to which Kylo had always turned a blind eye. _Has there ever been a time where I’ve done anything other than turn a blind eye to their slipups?_

The Zabrak was more than happy to take the Upsilon; parting with it gave Kylo a small pang of sadness, he loved those ships. But he will not miss those fucking beds.

What he traded them for the ships was a non-descript GR-75 medium transport. Hardly a fair deal, but Kylo wasn’t in a position to negotiate with the trader. He knew Attari had cash advanced a significant amount of his credits to buy this smuggler’s silence, he just never asked. Attari preferred it that way.

He looked over at Wyatt, sitting next to Rey and prodded gently against his conscious mind. Corellia had been their home as children, but he didn’t sense any melancholy coming from him.

“This was never my home Kylo” he said and that made Rey look at him with wide eyes.

“This is where we were born?”

“We lived just outside of Coronet. The degenerates who raised us lived in a shitty two-bedroom apartment in one of the high rise buildings. Most of my time with you was spent trying to keep you from leaping out the window; you were such a fearless climber even as a baby.”

Rey smiled at him widely and embraced him in a tight hug. “Home is wherever I am with you kiddo” Wyatt said to her as he moved a few strands of hair out of her face, gently kissing the top of her head.

For as long as he’d known Wyatt, Kylo can’t remember ever seeing him this happy. Rey seemed to share his delight, although Rey had always seemed like a happy person, even as all the odds were stacked against her. He admired her optimism.

They reached Hana City within a half hour after leaving Kor Vella. He piloted the transport to land on one of the many high rise buildings towering the cityscape. Unlike Corellia and Coruscant, Chandrila’s population had managed to expand its urban sprawl while protecting the natural environment. The planet was mostly covered by blue seas and tranquil hills. Vegetation was lush and plentiful, even in the bigger cities.

Kylo had never appreciated his parents’ home as a child. His memories tied to this place were dark and full of pain. This is where he began hearing Snoke’s voice in his thoughts and had inadvertently been a witness and contributor to the breakdown of the Organa-Solo marriage.

He never considered how fortunate he was to have grown up in a place with mild, temperate weather and fresh air until he had to spend time on Mustafar and Starkiller Base, and breathe the sterilized air on various First Order ships for most of his adult life.

He hasn’t seen this building in close to two decades, but he recognized it immediately. It was built on the sea shore and the beach was a short walk away. The rooftop had a private landing pad, which had been owned by his parents. It was where Han Solo would land and house the Millennium Falcon when he would return from his trips.

They step out of the transport and head to the elevator that will take them to the penthouse level. The salty breeze hits him as soon as he lowers the ramp and he inhales deeply. There is something about the combination of that scent with the freshness of the greenery and flowers that is so unique to Chandrila. In another life, Ben Solo would have said it smells like home.

He unlocks the doors to the apartment and they step in, greeted with curiosity by a silver hospitality droid.

“Master Ben. Welcome home!”

“Hello GG11. Please prepare the guest rooms for our guests and the master suite as well. We are not expecting visitors. Inform us immediately if anyone breaches the security perimeter.”

“Right away Master.”

Rey and Wyatt are looking around at everything in awe. He always forgets that not all the Knights of Ren grew up in affluent households like he and the two other men here. Luxury had never impressed him. He had just come to expect it, having never known anything else.

“Ok so when you said _apartment_ I was expecting a couple bedrooms somewhere in the middle of the city. This place is absolutely incredible!” Wyatt’s admiration was very sincere.

Kylo took in his former home. It really was spectacular; the apartment took up the entire penthouse level and because the building was circular in shape, all the outside walls were floor-to-ceiling transparisteel. There were four guest rooms and an office on one side of the apartment, each complete with a full bathroom. The master suite and his childhood bedroom were on the other side of the apartment, with a view of the seascape. The kitchen, living room and formal dining room were all open to each other in the middle of the apartment. The floors were a light hard wood and all the pieces of furniture were a soft, unblemished white.

Attari and Sunny flopped on the oversized sectional sofa and it didn’t look like they would be moving any time soon.  Sunny kicked off his boots and laid diagonally across the chaise, with his feet dangling, attracting the attention of the little crystal bastard that immediately snuck up and nipped him, making him jump.

It was nice to see that _Max_ wasn’t out to get only him.

Rey and Wyatt were admiring the view, watching the sun as it began to set.

“Oh fuck!” Wyatt exclaimed making everyone turn their attention to him. “We brought in these little terrorists but we forgot that fucking trooper up there. I’ll go bring him in before he gets any ideas. We can stuff him inside a trash chute or something.” No one else volunteered to go with him.

“Master, the bedrooms have all been prepared for you and your guests. Shall I start preparing supper?”

Kylo thought he could hear four different stomachs growl just then. “Thank you GG11, that would be great. Make sure you prepare something that doesn’t take long to make. And ensure there are extra servings. My guests eat a lot.”

“As you wish” the droid responds in her modulated voice and gets to work.

“Rey? Let me show you to your room. You get the master suite.” She turns around surprised and he can see two pairs of eyes peering at him from the couch.

“I sure as shit am not going to sleep in that bedroom!” there was only so much discomfort Kylo was willing to put up with. Being surrounded by his mother’s things, in his childhood home was bad enough.

“Kay” Rey says and follows him. He opens the double doors to reveal the large white bedroom and waves her inside, but she stands and gapes with her wide eyes.

The room is furnished sparsely, with only a luxurious reading chair and the bed. Thin white curtains were draped on the transparisteel wall, and the bed and chair were the same fresh shade of white. The bed was big enough to fit three men the size of Sunny Ren and it was equipped with probably a half a dozen fluffy white down pillows.

Without warning, she takes off her boots and jumps in the air, lands in the middle of the bed and starts bouncing. Her critters run inside and join her. The entire scene is absolutely ridiculous; Rey is smiling widely from ear to ear and a high pitched giggle escapes her mouth every time she leaps in the air. The two beasts seem equally excited to be trashing the bed that was pristine just seconds ago.

He can’t help the smile that comes to his lips watching her display of pure joy.

“Wow, you sure made minced meat of this bed kid!” Wyatt stands next to Kylo in the doorway, taking in the scene. “It smells like dinner is almost ready and look what I found! I forgot we packed these babies” he says as he lifts the crate of red wine they brought with them from Hoth.

“Kylo, this place is amazing!! I have never ever slept in a bed like this before, thank you!” Rey squeals as she stops her bouncing and just lays on the comforter between the pillows.

“Let’s go eat, I’m famished and this wine isn’t going to drink itself!” Wyatt turns and leads the way to the dining room where the other two Knights are setting the table.

GG11 prepared them a large salad, made with mixed greens, strawberries, nuts and fine cheese. She also arranged for them a rich charcuterie board with various salted meats, olives and pickled onions, several types of cheese, nuts and fresh fruit. There were two baskets filled with sliced fresh bread.

The building was equipped with a pantry on the bottom level, where fresh produce, cheeses and bread were always available for the buildings’ inhabitants. He remembered walking through the many isles as a child, sneaking the occasional grape or berry. For whatever reason, stolen food had always tasted better to him at that age.

They all sat down as Wyatt poured them generous glasses of red and they feasted. He noted that Rey and Wyatt had the same “style” of eating, both shoveling food into their faces like they were on a time limit. Sunny and Attari snickered as well. When they finished there wasn’t a single crumb left. They had polished off four bottles of wine and were ranging from fairly tipsy in his case, to all out shit-faced like Wyatt and Sunny. They needed this brief respite; they rarely got to behave like they were in their thirties.  A good night’s rest before they have to start discussing their next steps is necessary.

“What the hell, are you smoking?” he looks at Sunny as he lights up his death stick.

“Are you really going to give me shit about this? Wyatt’s tanked!”

“You’re just as drunk you lush” Attari quipped.

Rey can’t stop giggling and smiling her toothy grin that brings out her dimples and the sparkle in her eyes.

“Do’ya know what? You are a fucking adorable drunk Miss Rey! The prettiest Jedi I have ever seen in fact.” Sunny thinks he’s being smooth but it comes out slurred and his one eye is closed, causing him to strain the other one at her.

“Thanks! You’re not so bad yourself tiny!” and she bursts into another giggle.

“So what do the Jedi rules say about drinking? Aren’t you being all kinds of uncompliant right now?” Attari prods her with a smile on his lips.

“I don’t know what the Jedi would say about wine consumption, but I fucking love it!”

“It’s astonishing that such a sweet thing like you would have such a foul mouth!”

The men laugh with her this time. Kylo thinks he should be annoyed that both Sunny and Attari are clearly hitting on Rey now, but he can’t totally blame them; she’s the most gorgeous sight he’s ever laid eyes on. This is usually Wyatt’s que to step in and make idle threats about no one touching his sister, but he is blissfully passed out with his head on the table, snoring softly.

“I’m going to walk him to his room and then I’m going to call it a night. I am running on fumes.” He bends to drape Wyatt over his shoulder but catches Rey’s eyes questioning him. Did she want him to stay?

He shakes off the thought as he opens the door to Wyatt’s bedroom and drops him off on his bed, fully clothed. He won’t be moving out of this position until the morning.

Kylo walks into his own room and heads straight to the bathroom. He needs to take a shower. He hasn’t had one for two days now, sweat and dirt is caked on him and his hair is beyond greasy.

He changes into his sleeping clothes, which are just a pair of loose trousers and a t-shirt. The water and the citrus shampoo have actually reenergized him, he didn’t feel nearly as tired.

Thinking Sunny and Attari may be keeping the party going, he walks back out to the living room only to be met with the sight of Sunny Ren passed out face-down on the couch. Attari and Rey had clearly decided to just leave him there.

And then a disturbing thought came to him; _Attari and Rey!_ He hadn’t heard Attari’s door close and he was flirting with her after dinner. Out of all the Knights he has by far the most swagger and success with the ladies. He needed to stop them! _Rey is mine!_

He can’t just burst into her room so he finds the flimsiest excuse to go there and makes his way to the double doors where he hesitates for only a half of a second, filled with trepidation. _Turn around and go to sleep, you fucking idiot._

_Right, as if I could get to sleep now!_

He goes to knock but to his surprise, Rey opens the door. “Well hello! I thought I felt you out here” she offers him that big smile. He’s such a jackass.

“I…umm I just wanted to bring you some towels. I didn’t know if GG11 knew you’d need those.”

“Yah, I’m good” she giggles and points to the towel dress she’s wearing. Clearly she had the same idea as he, noticing her long wet hair combed and hanging down to one side, beads of water still glistening on her skin.

“Ahem…right. Ok, have a good night then” he bows his head and turns on his heel.

“Do you want to come in for a night cap?” she’s looking up at him with those sweet hazel eyes.

He lets out a long sigh “I would like that very much.”

He can’t hold back anymore; he bends his head and seals his lips to hers, wrapping his arms around her and crushing her to him as he walks them both inside her room, closing the door and locking it with the Force.

She’s kissing him back with the same hunger that’s consuming him, her hands making their way through his hair, pulling his face to her. She’s tall for a girl, but still significantly shorter than him so the way he’s bending over gives him a neck cramp. He lifts her up and she giggles as she wraps her long, lean legs around his waist - not wanting to break the kiss for a single moment. 

He is holding Rey by her firm bottom and he’s once again keenly aware that she’s only wearing a towel. Her lips are so soft against his, but he can’t help pulling the bottom one between his teeth, making her moan in his mouth. She’s had that reaction to his touch before and it’s made him just as wild.

He knows she feels the same way about him; she’s made it very clear that she wants him just as badly as he wants her, even if she has virtually no experience. Whether it’s the wine or the contact or both, he can feel his pulse in his ears, dizziness making him close his eyes.

More than likely, he’s dizzy because most of the blood in his body has rushed to his crotch. But he needs to sit down before he falls over and drops her on the ground.

So he sits on the bed with her in his lap, only the thin material of his pants keeping them from touching at this point. She’s still kissing him, rolling her hips into him out of pure instinct. He keeps his eyes closed as she breaks away from his mouth and trails kisses down his jaw line, blazing a trail down his throat. He grunts as she bites into the sensitive skin of his throat and reaches her tiny, delicate hands between them, lifting his shirt over his head and tossing it aside.

He’s done waiting and he doesn’t need to ask her permission this time. He stands up and turns them so she’s laying in the middle of the bed, him kneeling on top of her. He’s straddling her legs, keeping her still.

“You know I’m not stopping right?” she just smiles and nods and he rips the towel off her, leaving her completely naked. In the dim light of the room, he can see and appreciate her entire perfect body in all its flawless splendor.

Rey sucks in a sharp breath as he lowers his mouth to one of her pink nipples and takes it into his mouth. He sucks on it a little rougher than he intended, and she gasps but doesn’t seem to mind the added roughness. _Oh that’s interesting. All in good time._

He soothes the bite with his tongue and splays his hand on her abdomen, covering it in its entirety. She’s squirming between his legs, looking to get free but he’s not about to let that happen.

“Patience Rey” he whispers gruffly as he licks and kisses a trail from her breasts to her hips and back up to her mouth.  He reaches between her legs, caressing her entire pussy and slips a finger inside her. She’s soaking wet already and he’s rabid.

He continues his motion, sinking his finger deeper into her wetness, spreading her slickness up towards her clit with his thumb. He slips another finger inside her and she releases a wild sound at the amplified stretch. She’s breathing rapidly, moaning into his mouth as he speeds up the pace and puts more pressure on her clit. He pulls away from kissing her lips so he can watch her. He wants to watch her as he fucks her with his fingers. He wants to watch her cum.

Her body is so quick to respond to his attentions. Her muscles are tightening around him and she gets louder, fisting the sheets around her. She comes undone with a loud moan, her eyes rolling into the back of her head and her body arching under him.

She’s panting, beads of sweat glistening on her forehead, gliding towards her firm breasts, her lips red from his kisses.

“You’re so pretty when you cum sweetheart.”

His cock is rock hard at this point - it’s almost painful. He needs to be inside this woman more than he’s needed anything else in his entire existence. If anyone interrupts them at this point, they will be assured a quick death.

He gives her roughly two seconds to recover from her orgasm before he spreads her legs with his own, placing himself on top of her and resting his weight on his forearms on each side of her shoulders. He could kiss that mouth all day, every day, for the rest of his life and it will not be enough. She wraps her legs around his waist and uses her toes to slide his pants down his hips. She’s done this before; it seems that is something she enjoys. He wiggles his hips so he’s completely free of his pants and settles back between her legs.

He rubs the entire length of his throbbing cock against her warm slit, groaning as he’s covered in her slippery juices. He slides his hands under her bottom to angle her better, slightly pushing her knees towards her abdomen and uses his thumbs to spread her lips. He positions himself at her entrance and eases himself inside her, one inch at a time.

He’s sensing her discomfort through their bond and he feels guilty that this feels so unbelievable for him but it’s hurting her.

“I’m sorry baby, I promise it will feel _so_ good. I will go slow until you’re used to me. You’re so fucking tight, ugh” he says between his groans. This slow pace is killing him, all he wants to do is bury himself in her, fuck her senselessly, but he has to wait until she’s ready to take it.

He closes his eyes and bites his lip as he slides in and out of her, stretching her with each slow thrust. He feels her hips starting to keep rhythm with him and he can feel her discomfort replaced by pleasure. He picks up the pace a bit, experimentally, and she’s up for it.

He’s finally buried to the hilt inside her. “I’m going to fuck you now Rey.” She nods her head and rolls her hips into him, the motion nearly undoing him as her pussy squeezes around him.

He’s never fucked like this before; what makes this the best sex he’s ever had is the way she looks at him. So wanton and uninhibited, and all his. His thrusts are quicker, deeper, and she meets him with equal enthusiasm.

Her body is arching into him. He’s lifting her up at an angle where he can grab on to her ass to further increase the timing of his thrusts and rub her clit with his pelvic bone. She’s responding to the slight change in positions, getting louder. And although he didn’t think it was possible, she’s somehow gotten wetter. He knows he won’t be able to last much longer.

“Are you going to cum for me again sweetheart?” He reaches a hand between them and gives her the extra pressure she needs to send her over the edge. She cums with him inside her, her cunt so insanely tight around his cock, the strangled sound leaving her lips so filthy, he can’t hold back anymore. He lets out a growl as his entire body tenses and releases like a spring, filling her with his seed.

They fall back on the bed, panting and out of breath. He’s peppering kisses all over her clavicles, her throat and her cheeks. He finally pulls out of her, the separation causing both of them to wince. She nestles in next to him, laying her head on his chest, intertwining her fingers with his.

There were so many things he felt right now, so many things he wanted to say. But he didn’t. Because he was a coward.

“We’re definitely doing _that_ again!” Rey whispers against his chest with a giggle.

“Give me 15 minutes sweetheart and I’m all yours” he says as he smiles against her hair, drifting into a dreamless sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Start Wars day!! Although really, for all of us, every day is SW day!
> 
> Thank you to my wonderful beta Emily! I sent her 10 pages worth of poor grammar at 2 am and she had it all shined up for me in less than 24 hours. You're so amazing :)
> 
> So yay! They finally did it! I can't believe it took 25 chapters to get us here but now that it's happened, there's little chance these two will manage to keep their hands of each other. At least not for another chapter! Don't know what Wyatt Ren will think of all this, maybe we just won't tell him for a bit....
> 
> Next update to come some time over the weekend. As always, your comments are appreciated so much, like liquid courage to write more!


	26. Chapter 26

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This one is all SMUT. If you're not all about that, come back next chapter :)

Rey woke up at some point during the night finding herself still sprawled on top of Kylo. She wiped the tiny pool of drool she had left on his chest, thoroughly embarrassed.

She smiles at the thought that she would be in any way self-conscious at such a small thing, considering she is still completely naked and her body is draped over his, also in the same delicious state of undress.

She’s certain beyond a doubt that this has been the absolute best night of her entire life. He was so gentle with her, so patient and thinking about the way he had moved inside her made her shiver. She was happy that she had held out for this long, not that the opportunity for sex presented itself very often, but he was worth the wait.

Thinking of how she found him standing at the door, obviously looking for a reason to knock, made her laugh to herself. _What a charming idiot._ He came to check if she needed towels…but hadn’t brought any with him.

It didn’t matter; she had decided the second they were safely inside the apartment that she was going to have him. She just needed to buy some time so the prying eyes of the Knights weren’t on them and her well-meaning brother was otherwise detained. He had interrupted them at the worst possible time on Hoth and he clearly didn’t care how she felt about it.

Rey’s thoughts are interrupted as she tries to move into a more comfortable position. Her left arm is draped over him but her right is trapped under her own weight and she feels nothing from her shoulder downward. As she shifts gently, trying not to disturb his sleep, she discovers another source of pain. As much as she had enjoyed their earlier activities, she was very sore from him stretching her and his hips pounding into hers. She doesn’t care. The sting was just a reminder of him being so close to her, being inside her.

There is something she has wanted to do since that night they moved beyond kissing. She knows he likes it, because she’d Force walked in on him as he was getting it, when he acted like such an asshole. There is no point in dwelling on that anymore, she has done and said lots of despicable things to him too.

Where to start though? And would he be ok with it even if she doesn’t have a clue what she is doing? _No time like the present to find out!_

Her forearm can bear her weight now that she has regained feeling in it, so she leans in on it, in order to position herself better. Her eyes scan his entire body, taking in the chiseled musculature of his chest and abdomen, all the way down to where that superb v-line arrows towards what has now become one of her favorite parts of his body.

She peers up at his face and her breath hitches as she can see his eyes half open, watching her with curiosity through a thicket of black lashes. “Did I wake you Kylo? I’m sorry!”

He grins at her and that makes her heart skip a beat “No, you’re not.”

“No” she says as she places soft, open-mouthed kisses on his chest, trailing them down towards his hips. “I am not sorry.”

She slides her hand under the sheet that’s barely covering him and is thrilled to find him already hard when she wraps her hand around his length. She has no frame of reference. According to the throbbing between her own legs, he is big. A shiver rumbles through her as she remembers the feel of him inside her.

She isn’t sure what do now that she has him in hand, but thankfully he can hear her thoughts through the bond because he places his hand over hers and slowly guides her to stroke him up and down his shaft. His breathing quickens and she can feel his legs tensing. He needs more and she wants to give it to him.

She continues to move her hand the way he’s shown her and shifts so she can run her tongue on the tip of his cock with curiosity. He seems to like that, based on the way his body trembles. “Rey, you don’t have to do that.”

“I want to.” She continues exploring him, laving him with her tongue and taking him deeper into her mouth. She savors the feeling of him writhing and tensing under her touch, gently thrusting into her mouth as she continues to stroke him faster with her hand, while sucking and licking.

She looks up at him while she continues to stroke him; he seems to like that based on the soft moans he is letting out. She trails her tongue down his throbbing shaft and when she gets back to the top she opens her throat and takes his cock almost entirely inside.

He chokes out a deep moan, making her belly clench. “Maker, please don’t stop, that’s so good. Ah Rey I’m gonna cum.”

She doesn’t relent, continuing to use her hand, her mouth and tongue on him until his entire body becomes rigid, his hands pulling her hair. His face contorts into a silent scream as he arches his back and pushes his head into the pillows, filling her mouth with his seed.

He’s panting and his hand is draped over his eyes, a smile covering his face from ear to ear.

“That. Was. Unreal.” She relishes the praise he’s giving her; the entire act had made her feel so empowered. Having the most powerful man in the Galaxy reduced to a quivering mess just by her hands and mouth was intoxicating.

“Come here sweetheart” he croons as he pulls her up to him and gives her a quizzical look. “Did…did you umm _swallow?”_

“Isn’t that the polite thing to do?”

“You’re amazing” he whispers in the low timbre that covers her body in goosebumps as he kisses her cheek and positions her body so her back is to his front. She is wrapped in his arms as he nuzzles his face in her hair and slips one leg between hers. After just a few seconds, she can feel his body heavy against her, totally relaxed as he snores softly.

She finds herself easing into sleep as well, thinking about how much she loves being in his arms, wishing they could stay wrapped up like this forever. If only this was more than just a dream a lonely orphan had, to have friends, to have a family, to belong to someone who wanted to be hers. This is what the night was for, dreaming.

…

The next time she wakes, she can feel the warm light of the sunrise coming through the transparisteel wall caressing her face. But that is not what stirred her from her slumber.

She can feel Kylo awake behind her. His hot, soft lips gently press kisses against her shoulder blades as his fingers caress down her back, cupping her bottom roughly then trailing down the front of her thighs.

He presses himself against her and she can feel how hard he is again. That familiar heat is starting to gather in her belly as his fingers make their way up to the summit of her thighs. He spreads her legs just enough to make room for him to slip one inside.

“Fuck, you’re so wet already.” She could feel her thighs slicked with her arousal and if he didn’t pick up the pace she was likely to explode. How does he have her so worked up already? She was sleeping peacefully just minutes before!

She feels him smiling against her hair as he slips another finger inside her, thrusting at an unbearably slow pace.

“What do you want Rey?” His voice is just a low whisper but the sound makes her toes curl.

“I want you.”

“That’s not good enough!” He’s teasing her now, his touch just a whisper of where she wants it to be.

Her body is screaming for more, her desire emboldening her.

“I want you to fuck me.”

“You do? Hmm…. you’re going to have to ask nicely.”

“Now!” She growls as she can’t take his teasing any longer. She can feel his cock so hard against her bottom, she knows he won’t hold out much longer. She’s not going to give into his game this easily. She grinds her ass into him, letting her wetness cover some of his cock and his body stiffens, breath hitched in his throat.

In a whirl, he lifts himself up on his knees and pulls her up with him. His right hand is wrapped around her hips, cupping her pussy but to her chagrin, not moving any faster. His two fingers barely dipping in between her folds. He drapes his other arm around her waist and brings his hand to her breasts, gripping each of them roughly, making her gasp.

“You have to be quiet sweetheart, ok?”

She nods, whimpering as he takes his fingers out of her, spreading the slickness across her hips and onto her bottom. She can feel him positioning himself between her legs, spreading her knees with his.

Unlike earlier, he doesn’t allow her time to adjust to his girth; he enters her to the hilt in one thrust and she cannot control the ragged, savage sound leaving her throat. The pressure and fullness she feels from both his size and the new angle is overwhelming.

“Hush baby, you’re going to have to be more quiet than that” he says as his hand comes up from her breasts to hover over her mouth. He stills his hips, letting her get used to him now and although she’s completely exposed and at his mercy, the loss of control delights her.

“You feel so amazing Rey, so wet and tight around my cock. I need to fuck you” he whispers to her and she can feel her cunt clenching at his words.

To her delight, he stops teasing her and he starts moving his hips, thrusting in and out of her roughly. This is so different from earlier; he’s not holding back anymore and although his hips are viciously pounding into her, he’s still being gentle, kissing the back of her neck and shoulders.

His fingers aren’t teasing her anymore; he’s circling her clit giving her the added pressure that she needs. Her body is tense, tightening in his arms, so close to release.

“Cum for me Rey” he hums in her ear, biting her gently on the shoulder and she does, exactly as he commands, her body shuddering with aftershocks.

He takes his hand away from her mouth and places it between her shoulder blades, pushing her toward the mattress until her chest is flush with it. He grabs her hips with both hands and angles her down so that her ass is up and he has full access to her cunt.

She can hear him take in a ragged breath through his clenched teeth. “Fuck, I love you like this, so wet for me, so good for me.” He continues to thrust hard into her, the friction being almost too much for her to take. She buries her face in her pillow and bites down hard as he lowers himself, his body draped over her and his hands on the sides of her clenched fists.

His breathing speeds up as he rails into her now, sweat dripping from his face onto the back of her neck. He fucks her until she can feel him tensing up under her, his entire rigid body jerking into her as he orgasms.

She climaxes with him, loving the sensation of the hot bands of his cum filling her up, his entire weight still pressing her into the luxurious bed.

They’re both panting, blissed out and fucked out.

“Rey?” He whispers as he pulls out of her, making her wince at the separation. “This has been the best night of my existence.”

He looks at her so sweetly and wipes the tears that have trickled down her cheeks at his words.

“Me too.”

“We have to keep this between us you know. Things are already complicated as is. We can’t let this thing between us be a distraction.”

“This _thing?”_ she doesn’t disagree with him, but it’s fun to watch him squirm.

“You know what I mean Rey, don’t be a brat. If your brother gets wind of what I’ve done to you, he will probably try to murder me in my sleep.”

She can’t help but giggle. “What you’ve _done_ to me? You mean how you seduced your way in here with all that smooth talk about towels and such?”

“It worked didn’t it?” He arches a cocky eyebrow and gives her a sideways smile and as if on que, she can feel her belly tighten with desire once more.

“You are insatiable little Jedi!” he laughs as he pulls her into another wet kiss. Before she knows it they’re back at it again, the Galaxy having to wait just a little bit longer. Rey and Kylo are the only two people who matter right now.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was brought to you by several brunch time Memosas and the very sexy musical talents of the Weekend.  
> You know when you start a chapter and you think "maybe a little more smut would be good for the space babies" but then you end up just writing porn? That's what my Sunday Funday was like today!  
> I hope you guys enjoyed it ;)  
> Big thanks to the lovely Emily for being such a fabulous Beta and giving me less than 6 hours of turnaround time!   
> Come say hi on Tumblr @riaria84 or instagram @riacostec   
> Last, but never least - thank you! for reading, for commenting, for leaving kudos and for letting me share this with you!


	27. chapter 27

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Knights just want to have fun (sometimes)

Sunny Ren can’t sleep, so he starts the kaf pot and lights up another death stick as he waits for the brown elixir brew. He shouldn’t be smoking so much but really, what else could he do? If Auburn was in his position she would have made her displeasure known by now.

He misses her. He tried to contact her last night to no avail. He will try again as soon as he has his kaf. They have so much work to do now, their sudden, limited mobility further increasing the stress of everything that has come to pass during the last week.

If he’s being honest with himself, he admits that he feels a degree of relief to no longer be an assumed servant of the First Order. He would rather be perceived as a wanted criminal than known as a mindless killing machine for the repugnant organization.

“For fuck’s sake mate, are they still at it?” Attari Ren strolls into the room, his sleep interrupted once again.

“Give us one of those, would ya’ brother?” Sunny tosses him a death stick and fills two mugs full of kaf. They sit there, smoking and waiting for it all to end.

“They’re so lucky Wyatt’s suddenly unable to handle his drink.”

“After the night we just had, do you really think there is anything that could possibly stop those two? What is this, like, the fourth go around they’ve had?”

“Gotta give it to Kylo, he’s more than capable of keeping up with a twenty-something year old.”

“Let’s just hope the novelty of it all wears off soon.”

“Sure Attari, let’s just sit here hoping the two most powerful Force users in the Universe get tired of fucking.”

“We could talk to them nicely about practicing safe Force sex?”

“We could always just wait for Wyatt to freak out and fit his sister with a chastity belt.”

“I think we can agree that she is definitely _not_ a Jedi anymore, if she ever was one. Seems she’s been _thoroughly_ corrupted by the dark side.”

“Fuck, finally!” Attari breathed out in relief, putting out his death stick and exhaling the smoke out of his lungs.

They didn’t blame Rey for not knowing, but it was clear that Kylo had forgotten how the Force is e _ffected_ when Force users engage in sex. The loss of control, the uninhibited pleasure and eventual release causes a pulse in the Force felt in their immediate surroundings.

This can manifest in a number of ways, depending on the power of the users and their ability to control it during those times. C’mmaron and Alix were proficient in keeping it low key, even though once in a while they got carried away. Beyond hearing them, however, they’ve never had to endure any other form of awkwardness.

If only that was the case for Kylo and Rey!

Earlier in the night, Sunny had passed out on the comfortable couch and he had no intention of moving from it. He was feeling fantastic!  A day ago he was drugged and held prisoner by a pack of mercenaries working for the First Order.

He was thankful that the Knights had rescued him. He was delighted to be in their company without the burden of training or discussing strategy or the general seriousness they practiced in their roles as Guardians. He had a belly full of delicious, fresh food and had indulged himself with some extra servings of wine.

The first time he woke up in the middle of the night he thought they were under attack because the entire room was vibrating. Attari had run into the living room half naked and disoriented. Both had assumed the worst was happening and were standing in the middle of the apartment with their sabers lit, in some less than perfect defensive crouches. They looked like a couple of dumbasses!

And then they both felt it; the pulse in the Force. The arousal had permeated into both of them without warning, causing each to stammer and struggle to fight it, to stop it. It was so consuming; it was bad enough that they could hear everything that was going on next door, but they could _feel_ everything as well.

Talk about awkward and humiliating! He and Attari Ren were reduced to having to hide their sudden, devastating arousal behind their palms like a couple of inexperienced school boys back at Luke’s Temple. How envious they were of Wyatt Ren’s ability to sleep through this!

So the only thing they could do was smoke and have more wine and wait it out, hoping it would end soon. The wine was enough to help them get temporarily back to sleep…

The second time around they woke up startled, finding themselves still on the couch where they had passed out. At least the second time they were aware of what to anticipate and they attempted to channel the Force and meditate.

It didn’t work.

Back to smoking uncomfortably and sincerely, hoping for a quick death.

Attari had crawled back to his room at this point; this was not an instance where misery loves company.

The third time came as daylight was breaking. Somehow Wyatt was still sleeping blissfully unaware.

Sunny thought this was close to one of the most heinous forms of cruel and unusual punishment he had ever endured. Was there anything in his training that had covered how one could put themselves into a Force sleep? Temporary self-induced coma?

They were currently witnessing Kylo’s fourth go-around with the Jedi. They would surely stop, now that it’s late into the morning. Won’t they?

 _Thank the Maker!_ He thought to himself as the Force settled around them.

He and Attari glanced at each other with relief, both men letting out a long breath. Sunny sank into the sofa, closing his eyes and silently expressing gratitude to the Force for putting an end to his agony.

A solid ten minutes passed blissfully as the only sounds Sunny could hear were the steady gulps of Attari sipping his kaf.

Sunny’s head popped up, his eyes meeting Attari’s with trepidation as they heard the door to the master suite open and close ever so softly.

Kylo lumbered into the kitchen, looking at the floor, running his hands through his hair with a shit eating grin on his face. He had not felt them there.

“We brewed fresh kaf.” Attari says but he doesn’t move from his perch at the table.

“Umm…yeah…thanks…what are you guys doing up so early?”

“It’s 9 in the morning” Sunny said dryly.

“Right. So, you’re probably wondering…”

“Nope!” both answered at the same time, Kylo’s reddening cheeks and slight fidgeting demonstrating his discomfort.

“I was just…umm…I was checking…”

“Just don’t bother, ok?” Attari interrupts him before he’s had a chance to come up with a semblance of an acceptable excuse as to why he’s emerged out of Rey’s room bare foot and disheveled, smiling from ear to ear.

“It’s not what you think.”

“The Force pulse Kylo! How did you forget about all of _that?_ You didn’t attempt to protect yourself at all!”

“Oh…well fuck. You guys, ehem…heard then?”

“Yeah.”

“Heard what?” All three turn as Wyatt stumbles into the living room looking like he’s felt better, one eye still closed, brow crinkled with displeasure at the bright sun inundating the room, reflecting all of the white surfaces of the kitchen.

“Nothing. Kaf?” Attari offers and pours a cup for Kylo as well, whose expression is a mix of gratitude and guilt, and maybe a dash of apprehension.

_I’d be scared if I was you bro._

Kylo only briefly glances over at him, but Sunny can tell he was annoyed at that implication.

Wyatt shuffles over and grabs the mug out of the extended hand, grunting a _thank you_ and taking a seat next to Attari.

Kylo still hasn’t moved from where he was standing, frozen in the middle of the room. Sunny knew Kylo has never been in this position. He was always ten steps ahead of everyone and he was more than proficient at controlling his emotions. _It’s the girl, she makes him vulnerable._

Just then, the door opens again and the little Jedi walks out in a pair of loose grey trousers and a green t-shirt, with the Resistance emblem on the sleeve.

 _Well isn’t that so poetic,_ Sunny thinks sardonically. He’s not normally quite such a jerk but he’s hungover and he’s had next to no sleep thanks to these two going at it like a couple of Loth cats in heat.

Her hair was wet, flowing freely around her shoulders. She too, was smiling in the same way Kylo had just minutes ago.

_Like a fool._

“Hey kiddo, how’d ya sleep?” Wyatt asks and Sunny can see Rey’s face turning an incredible shade of red.

“Fine thanks! What about you? You look like you’re hurtin’ big bro.” She’s speaking unusually fast.

_Zero poker face Jedi._

“Oh man, I passed right out! Slept like a log! A hoard of Banthas could’ve run through there and I wouldn’t have heard it.”

_Or Kylo Ren fucking your sister all night long. You silly drunk bastard!_

Kylo definitely heard that as well judging by the death stare he just gave him.

Neither he nor Attari can look at the Jedi, avoiding all eye contact with her will be their goal for the rest of their lifetimes. Sunny shudders at the memory of their first simultaneous orgasm permeating through him.

_Blech!_

Now that the Force wasn’t pulsing a raw stream of stimulation right into their blood stream, Attari and Sunny were very much amused and looking forward to being by-standers to what was inevitably going to happen as soon as Wyatt’s awareness sharpens.

Which should be pretty much any minute now…

“Rey, are you feeling sick or something? You’re all flushed.”

_Don’t worry, Master is going to take good care of her._

Kylo is now grinding his teeth, taking two slow menacing steps towards him, pulling Wyatt’s attention.

“You guys are all acting weird.” He says, maintaining his pirate eye stance.

But Sunny can see Wyatt reappraising his sister’s permanent flush and discomfort. He then takes in Kylo’s appearance with more scrutiny.

_Ah, the wheels are a-turnin’…_

Attari is not trying very hard to swallow the laughter that’s bubbling in his chest, which comes out as an ungraceful snort.

“Kylo, why is your shirt inside-out and backwards?” Wyatt straightens in his chair and after another second, his face contorts into a deep scowl as his eyes bulge.

“What. The. Fuck! You didn’t?!” Wyatt places his mug on the table and stands, his eyes burning into Kylo, darting between Kylo and Rey.

“Stop it!” Rey steps in front of Kylo, attempting to protect him from Wyatt’s wrath. It was quite endearing.

Sunny and Attari each take a few steps back from the trio. Being observers was one thing, but there was no way either of them would get involved in this family drama any further.

“SHE IS MY SISTER!!!”

A loud ruckus interrupts Kylo before he can speak a single word.  The trooper they had captured on Jadha had somehow freed himself and was attempting to make a run for it.

_Some people are just born unlucky._

Little did the trooper know that he had just walked right into a hornets’ nest.

“And where the fuck do YOU think you’re going?” Wyatt’s fury is now entirely shifted towards this poor unfortunate fool.

As Wyatt steps toward him, the trooper puts up his hands and falls on his knees, conceding defeat.

_Smart._

“Wyatt, leave him be.” Rey asks in a soft, but still nervous tone.

“No. We’re doing this now.” He growls as he grabs the trooper by the scruff of his neck and knocks over his helmet.

Wyatt drags him across the room and throws him down on the sofa, holding him in place with the Force. The man is maybe the same age as the Jedi, still a boy. He’s got sandy blonde hair, a stocky build and green eyes, which are now filled with tears and fear.

“Lad, I am having an incredibly bad morning, the likes of which you can’t even imagine and I’ve only been awake for about ten minutes. So you’re going to tell me what I want to know, or I swear to the Force that I will tear you apart from limb to limb with my bare hands.”

_I don’t think this is all about the trooper…_

Sunny can see Kylo through his peripherals, nodding his head in agreement.

The boy is visibly shaken, sweat pouring down his face, mixing in with the tears that are flowing freely. The darkness is rising in Wyatt Ren, permeating into the Force and making the space around them heavy with static energy.

“You understand how serious I am, right?”

The boy just nods at him, scrunching his eyes as if he was anticipating a stroke of a fist at any point.

“Good. Nothing will happen to you if you are forthcoming. Now that we’re on the same page, tell me your name.”

“Sir yes sir, it’s PT0410.”

“What’s with the First Order and this bullshit naming convention? Like, how the fuck is anyone supposed to remember all these bar codes?” Wyatt looks at Kylo.

“They didn’t ask my opinion on the matter.” Kylo shrugs.

The trooper is clearly aware who spoke the last words; even if he’s not facing Kylo, his body tenses up and his breath hitches in what seems to be a visceral reaction.

“Ok, well you know what, your name is now Pete. And you get to be Pete until the end of your days, which could come very quickly should you choose to deviate from our agreement.”

The boy nods and swallows dryly. Sunny has never seen Wyatt interrogate anyone for as long as he can remember. He seems to be quite comfortable in that role.

“Now Pete, be a dear and tell us just what exactly were you doing on Jedha, working with those Kanjiclub cunts?”

“Our battalion was sent there to supervise the drilling ops and transport the core samples back to the lab. But once we got to the old prison we recognized the Supreme Leader and the Kanji’s wanted to cash in on the bounty Hux announced.”

“The lab. Where is it?”

“On Naboo sir.”

“Hux has a lab set up on Naboo? Why?’ Sunny chimes in, interrupting Wyatt’s interrogation.

“I don’t know sir. It was part of my mission to find out.”

“Your mission? C’mmon now Pete, you have to give more details than that.” Wyatt frees him from the Force hold, letting him slump into the sofa with a sigh of relief.

“Sir, I’ve always served under Commander Peavey. I know he set him free.” He nods his head towards Attari. “Peavey does not recognize Hux as the new Supreme Leader but he also doesn’t have the ability to stage a successful coup yet. There’s a couple dozen of us who are loyal to him only. He gave us a mission.”

“Go on.” Kylo chimes in, the boy flinching at the sound of his voice.

“We infiltrated the rest of the ranks to achieve two goals; first off, the commander wanted to find out what Hux’s secret operations were. I was only able to find out where the Kanji’s were transporting the core samples, but to what end, I don’t know.”

“And your second goal?” Wyatt calls his attention back.

“The second goal was to infiltrate the ranks of troopers and get a sense for how many would turn away from the Order and pledge their loyalty to Commander Peavey.”

“Turn away from Kylo Ren you mean. He was the Supreme Leader until just a few days ago.”

Sunny could feel a wave of fear taking over the trooper, who was trying to find the right words now.

“Sir…Kylo Ren never had any men. We all feared him but we are programed to be loyal to the Order, not its Leader.”

Sunny was aware that Kylo always knew Hux was in charge of the army, but he never cared because he had the Dark side of the Force fueling his power. Fear was how he ensured Hux’s loyalty. Clearly, that was only effective to a certain extent.

Kylo steps around to stand next to Wyatt, facing the boy soldier now.

“What made you switch sides Pete?” Kylo asks, his tone soft and unthreatening. Well, as unthreatening as Kylo Ren could possibly sound.

“Sir, Commander Peavey is a good man, he treats us with respect and he is a good leader.”

“That’s only part of it. Tell me the rest.”

“Sir?”

“I won’t hurt you. Go on. Say it.”

“It was FN2187. And…”

“And?”

“The Jedi. We all heard the stories about what she did and how powerful she was. We all admired her courage very much. She seems like someone worth following. Plus…she’s very pretty and we heard FN2187 was her boyfriend…”

“You’re mistaken about one thing - Rey is mine.”

“Are you fucking mad?” Wyatt’s temporary distraction now gone, he was back to the issue at hand. “Pete, Rey is not pretty, she is my sister.”

“What the hell Wyatt?” the Jedi finally speaks and Sunny can’t help but smile at her indignation. She’s not wrong. They’re being idiots.

“You need to calm down and start behaving like an adult. I love that you care so much for me; I’ve never had anyone look out for me for most of my life. It’s really lovely but there are boundaries you need to respect. One of those firm boundaries is that whomever I choose to sleep with is none of your business.”

Pete the trooper was so enthralled at all the drama around him, he seemed to forget that he had been crying and sweating in terror just minutes ago.

“And you! Just because we are having sex, doesn’t mean you have some sort of rights over me, like I’m some sort of property. I told you on Hoth, only Rey owns Rey.”

“Sorry.” Wyatt supplicated, taking a seat next to Pete.

“Forgive me sweetheart.” Kylo walks over to where Rey was standing with her hands on her hips, and bends over to kiss her softly on the lips.

And just like Pete the trooper, the three Knights of Ren are astonished at the very uninhibited, genuine display of affection Kylo Ren had just shown to the last Jedi.

Sunny’s suspicions were confirmed. Nothing is as vulnerable as a man in love.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for sticking with me!!!! I hope you liked this update! As always, please let me know your thoughts!!!   
> Thank you forever to the amazing Emily for being such a fantastic Beta!  
> I will go back to the beginning few chapters and correct some of the mistakes I know are there and are making me cringe just thinking about them.  
> You guys are awesome and every kudo and comment makes me so so so ridiculously happy!!!  
> Come say hi on Tumblr @riaria84


	28. Chapter 28

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poe gets hit with a touch of gingervitis but he'll pull through.

Auburn’s transformation shocked Poe into a rare moment of silence. In all fairness, he had not taken the time to notice her appearance before, annoyed that Queen Mirexjya was forcing her down his throat. He was more than capable of running a basic espionage operation.

Diplomats are not generally paranoid as they are always sufficiently guarded and Coruscanti people are so incredibly self-important that they would never suspect that anyone would consider undermining them.

At any rate, he could not refuse the Queen’s directive that he take one of her security staff with him. He begrudgingly agreed to have her in his room so they could collaborate on an action plan.

When he opened the door to her, he was stunned. She was a siren. He wasn’t sure if he found her attractive mostly because of her exquisite physique, her delicate, angelic face or the perfect blend of innocence and raw sexuality she was oozing. One thing was certain – he was very much into this woman.  

“Lady Auburn. Come in.”

“Just Auburn. Trust me, I’m no lady.”

He’s never had a ‘type’ before. He’s never truly discriminated between women – he loves them all and they love him. But he’s starting to think redheads might be his favorite.

She takes a seat on his sofa, making herself comfortable right away.

“Drink?”

“Seems like the right thing to do.” She answers and it’s sufficient direction for him to pour them both a hefty portion of whisky.

Auburn tosses hers back in one gulp, tipping her glass with the universal gesture for “more” and Poe thinks he might be in love.

_Hold it together Dameron, you’ve got work to do._

She takes her time with her second drink, sipping it delicately.

“So, General Dameron.”

“Just Poe. Please.”

“Ok, Poe” and she grins widely, the sparkle in her eyes so mischievous. “Where do we start with our mission?”

“Honestly, I don’t think we need to make this any more complicated than it is. We know where they’re staying so we go to their hotel, distract them long enough for us to get into their rooms and install the surveillance bugs.”

“Maybe go through their stuff while we’re there, see what we can find?”

“Exactly.” He needs to focus and stop gawking at her. He could agree to just about anything right now.

“I have to be honest, there’s something about them that I just don’t trust.”

“Well yah they’re Coruscanti politicians.”

“I’m Coruscanti, Poe.”

“Shit! I’m sorry, I just meant..”

“Don’t worry about it. I know what you meant and I don’t take any offence to it. These two though, they aren’t the typical political envoys Coruscant would send. For one, they’re quite unpolished in their appearance and gruff in their speech. I can’t put my finger on it, there’s just _something_ that’s making me uneasy about this whole thing.”

“I didn’t actually get a very good look at them when they stormed out of the meeting. But I will trust your judgment. The only politician I knew was Leia Organa and she was singular.” He felt a pang of angst thinking of his dearly departed leader, mentor and friend. _This is not the time for that._

“How do we distract them?”

BB-8 rolled in just as she finished asking her question.

“BB-8 here will be the distraction. He might seem cute and harmless but don’t be fooled; this droid has been through a lot of shit. Actually, his mischief is what sparked the conflict with Kylo Ren and the First Order to begin with.”

Auburn chokes on her drink, her eyes darting between Poe and BB-8 incredulously. “Pardon me?”

“I won’t get into all the details, but he was carrying the map to Luke Skywalker that Kylo Ren was after when he ran into Rey the Jedi. BB-8 showed Rey the map. Ren found her and kidnapped her. We then came out of hiding and blew up Starkiller Base. The First Order chased us through Hyperspace so we blew a hole through Snoke’s ship. Rey killed Snoke and Kylo Ren chased us down on Crait. Luke deceived him in a confrontation long enough for us to be rescued by Rey and Chewie, and here we are.”

“Wow, that was very succinct. So where did BB-8 get the map from?”

“Lor San Tekka gave it to me and I hid it inside BB-8 when Kylo Ren found us”.

“So wouldn’t it be fair to say that _you_ are in fact responsible for sparking the events leading to the conflict with the First Order?”

He knows she’s right, but that stings. Even when Leia demoted him after the Dreadnaught plan went terribly awry, he hadn’t felt quite this called out on it.

“Well, I supposed that’s fair. At least to some extent.”

“Where did you guys go after Crait?”

“Hoth.”

The girl doesn’t say anything but he noticed a slight change in her expression, frowning ever so slightly. That’s the typical reaction most people have when they hear the frozen world’s name.

“So where is the Jedi?”

“Ah, that I can’t tell you Auburn. You understand.”

“Sure of course. Ok, let’s get going then. I’ll trust your superhero droid to come up with something creative when we arrive at their hotel.”

***

They made it to the hotel relatively quickly, but not as stealthy as he’d hoped. Auburn attracted a lot of attention and their presence had been less anonymous than he would’ve liked.

Through well-placed sources, Poe found out the room numbers for the delegates’ accommodations and BB-8 easily infiltrated the hotel’s information system, obtaining the access codes for their rooms.

The two diplomats were having dinner, surrounded by their security team and several gorgeous young ladies. Auburn was correct, something isn’t quite right about these two. Their behavior is more along the lines of weapons dealers on Canto Bight, rather than political figures.

They seem fairly distracted as is, but he sends in BB-8 to make sure they don’t move. “Alright buddy, do your thing. If you see any of them leaving, you let me know right away.”

The droid beeps in agreement and scoots over to the table where the boisterous group was dining. He trusted his droid enough to leave this part of the mission entirely up to him and his creative mischief.

He and Auburn climbed into the crowded elevator and pushed the number for the top floor. There were probably ten other individuals in this elevator so the two of them were practically squished into one of the glass walls.

Poe was so close to her that he could smell her shampoo and perfume and distinguish some traces of blue in those steel grey eyes of hers. Her presence overwhelmed all his senses.

She seemed just as affected by their close quarters as he was; a pretty pink flush covering the apples of her cheeks as she looked up at him through her long lashes.

The doors opened again and an additional two people packed themselves inside the already crammed elevator, pushing Poe right up against Auburn, trapping her between the glass wall and himself. He can feel her shape pressed into his body. Feeling the curves under her clothes that he’s already admired makes him practically giddy.

_Seriously man, you’re pitiful._

“Sorry my lady, it’s really crowded in here.” Pointing out the obvious in lieu of an apology for his stubbly cheek brushing against hers is his strategy for not moving from this position.

He can feel his breath hitch as her hands brush his just lightly and he feels her smile against his face. She’s much shorter without those crazy shoes but they do bring her conveniently close; he could easily turn his face just a few inches and kiss her right here.

The elevator stops just then and it seems everyone is on the same floor. He and Auburn are the last to get out and slowly saunter over to the room they’re targeting.

They look like any other couple returning from dinner. No one pays any attention to them.

Once they’re at the door, Poe punches the access code and they are inside the tastefully decorated suite.

“You go check the bedrooms. I will dig around here and keep an eye out.” Poe does as he is bid.

The first bedroom seems to be completely unoccupied. The second bedroom has several suitcases and trunks, likely full of lavish and unnecessary clothing, as is the fashion on Coruscant these days.

Poe isn’t a spy; digging through other’s possessions without leaving a trace is not his expertise. He is much more comfortable with obvious intrusion and subsequent destruction of property. He finally finds something that peaks his interest – a holoprojector.

He plays it and he is in immediate disbelief at what he sees.

“Phase I of our plan is now successfully complete; the First Order is ours. The lab analyzed the core samples from Jedha and we are a go for Phase II. I don’t need to remind you how vital it is that you bring Mirexjya to heel and get access to the trade routes. Use any means necessary. Report to me directly once you’ve achieved your purpose.”

“Hugs!”

 _What the hell!_ He knew of course that the First Order provides the unofficial muscle of Coruscant in exchange for their financial back-up but they are up to something. And when it involves that smarmy ginger, it is never good.

As he rounds the corner to get back to the living room and share what he’s found with Auburn, the front door is blown off the hinges in a loud explosion and Auburn is blown across the room by a blaster.

He runs over to her panicking, so distracted that he almost doesn’t register that he is surrounded.

“Relax Dameron, she’s just stunned.” He recognizes the voice and some of the pieces fall into place as the owner of said voice makes his way between the two ‘diplomats’ and their body guards.

“Razoo Qin-Fee. Sold your soul to the devil I see.”

“You should talk Dameron, what the fuck are you doing parading around town with a wanted criminal?”

He doesn’t say anything, just squints his eyes with skepticism.

“You’ve got to be kidding me!” The little Kanji laughs a full-bellied, vicious laugh. “You have no idea who this bitch is do you? Is there no holo-net in whatever shithole your rag-tag army of rebels is holed-up in?”

Poe looks over at Auburn laying motionless on the ground, incredulous that she is anything but a superbly trained servant of the Queen.

“You two fuckin?”

“How is that any of your concern, asshole?”

The leader of Kanjiclub approaches him and his amusement is completely gone from his tone of voice.

“If you were I’d say that I hope you enjoyed it because you won’t be hittin’ it again. This little sexy piece of ass here is one of Kylo Ren’s band of merry Force sycophants. A cold blooded murderer in her own right.”

Poe knows he’s paused for dramatic effect and it annoys him, but he’s itching to know what the Kanji is talking about.

“Spit it out would ya, I don’t have all day.”

“You really stepped in this one Dameron. Should’ve stayed hiding in whatever forsaken rat hole you’ve been in for the last year. This here is Auburn Ren. Of the Knights of Ren, you know? And Supreme Leader Hux wants the bitch so bad, he’s offered five hundred thousand credits to have her alive. I plan to cash in on that.”

Poe could feel his head spinning from all the information he’s absorbed in the last few minutes.

“What do you mean _Supreme Leader_ Hux?”

“You’ll get to chat him up soon enough pet. I know you two have some unfinished business.”

Poe doesn’t get to say anything else as he feels the dark taking him entirely after a swift hit to the back of his head.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys!!! Thank you so much for all the wonderful feedback you've given me on the last update, I cannot tell you how happy I am that you liked the Knights of Ren the way I presented them! If they get too frat-boy ish for your liking, be sure to let me know. Don't worry thought, they will have plenty of chances to get their game faces back on!  
> They will all be reunited at some point as everything comes together.   
> As always, forever thankfulness to the lovely Emily for doing all the hard Beta work on this story!!!!   
> Just to give you a heads up, I am leaving for vacation today and I won't be back until the beginning of June. I will be writing but I won't be updating for a couple weeks. I'm hanin' out with my grandma mostly and she is not into the "interwebs" ;)   
> Thank you in advance for any comments you leave, you guys know how they are like fuel to my fire! I will answer them as soon as I get a morsel of Wi-Fi!


	29. Chapter 29

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Auburn and Poe get to chat while Finn is having kind of a bad day

_“Auburn my precious baby, here is the most important life lesson I have for you: never give a man all the power. Make him believe he has it, make him believe that he owns you, body and soul. The illusion will make him drop his guard and he will be enslaved to you. The Maker made you this pretty for a reason child. Don’t squander it. The Force is strong with you my beauty but make sure you keep your secrets, keep your own stash of running away cash and don’t give him everything you’ve got; keep something of yourself just for you, that is how you will survive. There is no such thing as true love between a man and a woman; there is only power.”_

Mama Sade’s voice is ringing in her head. She was so close, so real that Auburn could almost touch her fragile hands. Almost…and the loss of the contact before it could even take place filled her chest with cold shards of ice.

She’s aware that she is in danger. The loud ringing in her ears and the cramping of all her muscles serving as confirmation that indeed she had been stunned into unconsciousness fairly recently. Instead of panicking, however, she chooses to languish for a bit longer in the memories she never visits, feigning unconsciousness.

Auburn’s grandmother, lady Sade to most, had been a veritable force in her life time. She was the indisputable matriarch of her family, who had built their family name on Coruscant and in the rest of the galaxy from nothing.

Auburn’s father was a well-known and respected real estate developer and a generous philanthropist. Her family’s true fortune had come from lady Sade’s savvy sense of business and a healthy dose of street smarts.

Her grandmother had told her the story of her upward mobility many times. She was born in the low levels of the capital and worked her way through various menial positions until she met her grandfather, the only son of a wealthy warlord. After her husband met his untimely death under mysterious circumstances, lady Sade took over the family’s legitimate and less than legitimate pursuits. Laundering credits for the Guavians, the Kanjis and several other criminal organizations was one of the most profitable ways Auburn’s grandmother ensured financial prosperity for their family.

Auburn’s mother was a sweet lady, but completely oblivious to her own mother’s pursuits, always more interested in shopping and making improvements to their home, their gardens and of course, her own face and body. She was too feeble and delicate of spirit to be trusted with this kind of responsibility and so the baton was to be passed on to Auburn.

Mama Sade had been grooming her since childhood for this future, which came to a screeching halt when Auburn was 15 years old and her grandmother suddenly passed away, leaving her with a permanent sense of emptiness, akin to a black hole in her heart that she could never fill.

Her grief had come in waves and discharged out of her like lightning, as bouts of fury and unspeakable destruction to anything and everything in her path. The dark had cradled her in misery and had healed her through her misery.

She had to leave after that. There was nothing for her on Coruscant and there was no place she could go where she wasn’t constantly being reminded of her grandmother and the future they prepared together that would never come to be.

Auburn heard about Luke Skywalker and his Jedi Academy and was intrigued, not because she cared to hone her abilities with the Force in particular, but because her parents would not be able to find her there and the chances of anyone there knowing who she was were pretty slim.

She took her ship and her running away stash and left Coruscant without saying goodbye, without looking back.

Within minutes of arriving at the Jedi Temple and meeting Luke, she met Sunny. The sweet giant with his piercing blue eyes and baby face broke through her walls immediately. Although he was two years her junior, he took up the mantle of big brother to her instantly, offering her unconditional and unlimited brotherly love.

But there was still something missing because the void in her chest was still present and the only times she felt truly comfortable were the brief instances when she was alone and she could let the darkness permeate her and engulf her. She had never been able to fully return Sunny’s kinship, a small part of her was always kept away from him, just for her.

The darkness was just for her.

Auburn thought she could fill the emptiness with other emotions. While she knew there wasn’t such a thing as true love, she also knew without a doubt that lust was a very real emotion. Even at the young age of 15, she was already starting to feel those pangs of unbearable want.

Thinking back, she now understands that having dozens of untrained Force sensitive teenagers in close proximity at the Temple caused them to feel each other’s unbridled lust as a group, amplifying what each of them was perceiving as their own bodies going completely insane from hormones.

She feels a smidgen of pity for poor Skywalker, trying to instill in them the idea that celibacy was to be their way of life during their daily lessons, while most of them were engaged in unrestricted ‘meditation’ with other students at night. He was so heavily outnumbered, he never stood a chance. Especially with secret dark side wielders like herself, Sunny, Wyatt and Ben Solo.

Auburn knew she was a shitty padawan and would never be a Jedi from the beginning. Less than two days after her arrival she had already ensnared Wyatt in her net. He was only 13 but he was already built more like a man than a boy and the two of them spent all their time together secretly making out. She knew she was his first kiss; he didn’t know he was hers.

But their teenage romance ran out of steam quickly, the two of them realizing there just wasn’t sufficient chemistry between them to continue their exploration. They were most certainly better off as friends and each of them moved on.

She had moved right along to Alix. Auburn had wondered if maybe the lack of chemistry between her and Wyatt had been due to her not being attracted to only men. Her and Alix’s make out sessions were a bit more intense but still fairly innocent and when C’mmaron finally showed some interest in Alix, their relationship status became firmly established as friends only.

Attari was already a man when he arrived at the academy. He was 17 and his tall frame was already nicely filled out by strong bulky muscle. His flawless ebony skin, perfect pearly white smile and sparkling dark eyes mesmerizing her on the spot. There was a strong mutual attraction between them and they didn’t waste any time getting down to business.

She had loved kissing those luscious soft lips while he held her so gently in his lap, their massive height discrepancy making all stand-up options impossible. It was during one of those instances where she had discovered exactly what was between a man’s legs and the effect her attentions had on _it_ and him. The way he had gasped the first time she had rolled her hips into his hardening cock made her feel incredible. She was drunk on the power she had over him at that point, that this huge man was at her mercy and he would do anything for her as long as she didn’t stop. She didn’t stop; she never felt any regrets having given Attari her virginity.

She did regret breaking his heart.

They had been fucking constantly for a good six months when he had blurted out that he loved her while they were still intertwined in post-coital bliss. She felt instantly like a cornered animal, panicked as she felt her throat close up and her breaths quicken watching his face fall when he realized she was not saying it back. She felt the darkness rising in him with every second that passed, sobering him up from the intoxication of his infatuation to the reality of his heartbreak.

She couldn’t say it back, love wasn’t real. Only power. And she had all of it, and it was as pretty as it was cruel.

After they got dressed in silence that night, they never touched again and never spoke of their time together to each other or anyone else. But that was the day the dark seeped into the depths of Attari’s immaculate soul and entangled him for good.

This is Auburn’s biggest regret. And a secret she kept just for herself, only shared with the darkness.

_What the fuck is wrong with me?  This trip down memory lane is almost as much fun as getting fucking stunned by a bunch of dirt bags._

With that thought, she opens her eyes tentatively, taking in her surroundings.

She’s securely restrained in an interrogation rig, which makes her roll her eyes. _How original!_

She also makes note of the intravenous tubes that are pumping some sort of transparent substance right into her veins - some sort of tranquilizer no doubt.

“So, Auburn _Ren_ ” she’s startled by Poe Dameron’s voice and the venomous way he says her chosen name. Why wasn’t she aware of him being in such close proximity to her? And then a frightening realization…

“The Force! I can’t feel the Force at all!” She can hear the panic in her voice and has no ability to keep her tears at bay. If she can’t feel the Force, she can’t dip into the comforts of the dark side. What if this is permanent? What if this is her punishment for taking it for granted her entire life? What is she without that hidden part of herself?

“Hey hun, don’t cry, we’ll figure out our way out of this ok?” She hadn’t realized she was sobbing until she heard Poe’s words.

“Why are you being kind to me Dameron? All I’ve done is lie to you since I’ve met you. You know what I am.” _A soulless murderer who doesn’t deserve any kindness._

“So it’s true then, you are one of them? One of the Knights of Ren?”

What’s the point in lying to him now…. “Yes.”

“Why were you in the palace…actually HOW did you get to be a handmaiden to the Queen of Naboo?”

“Kylo Ren arranged it. He and Myrexyja have known each other since they were children.” She takes a moment to  find where he is in the dark room and she spots him just a few feet away, standing up with his hands bound, chained up to the wall behind him.

“Sure sure…but why?” He says and his face grimaces with realization. “He knew we were there didn’t he?”

“Of course. He’s Kylo fucking Ren.”

“So what, were you in cahoots with the Queen to spy on us, kill us one by one?”

“No, she only allowed me access to Naboo unfettered; she didn’t want any part in it. And no, I wasn’t going to kill any of you rebels, just keep an eye out, make sure your recruiting didn’t get out of control. Maybe a bit of sabotage if warranted…”

She watches as Poe shakes his thick curls and a sarcastic laugh escapes his throat.

“So what you’re telling me is this entire time we were hiding… it was only successful because Kylo Ren didn’t care enough to hunt us down?”

“Indeed.”

“We fucking left Rey on Hoth for no reason! Fuck me, I’m shit at this leader thing.”

She wasn’t going to bring this up so bluntly, she was going to try to coax the information out of him but the time for that has come and gone and she needs answers…

“Why did you leave the Jedi Rey there?”

“Because of the weird Force Bond magic bullshit those two have, but if I knew he knew where we were anyways…. wait a minute…. he did this on purpose, didn’t he? He wanted us to leave her! FUCK ME, I’M SUCH AN IDIOT!”

“Seems like it. Hey could you not shout and swear so much, it’s really not helping my headache. What’s this ‘Force Bond Magic Bullshit’ exactly?”

“C’mmon darlin’, let’s not lie to each other anymore shall we? You know exactly what I’m talking about! That bond that Rey and Kylo Ren forged when he tried to pry into her mind on Starkiller and she turned it all around on him, but they’re stuck now. They can see each other and hear each other’s thoughts. She went around calling him Ben for Maker’s sake! Rey told us they had no control over it, and we left her so Kylo wouldn’t be able to see where we were. But he only wants her…and we just served her to him on a platter. It’s only a matter of time before he makes his way there, and she’s all alone. Fuck!”

Auburn feels like she’s finally able to put the pieces together. The Awakening! This is why Kylo was so evasive, he was part of her awakening. She calls him Ben? Most importantly, the Master of the Knights of Ren had lied to the Knights of Ren, purposely keeping this information from them, keeping _her_ away from them. She felt her cheeks flush and her vision blur with rage.

“Kylo Ren went to Hoth about a week ago” she hisses through her clenched teeth and Poe snaps his head at her in shock.

“He already has her.”

“Indeed. But honestly Poe, I’m really more concerned about the predicament we find ourselves in right now. I can’t feel the Force anymore. That means we will have to do this the old fashioned way. Do you know who took us and where we’re going?”

“Uh yah, guess they stunned you before any of the dialogue went on. Those fucking diplomats we were following around were Kanjiclub; Razoo-Qui-Fee stunned you and he’s taking us to Chandrila, where – and get this – Supreme Leader _Hux_ – has some business with us.”

“FUCK OFF!”

“Now, now! What happened to please don’t swear and yell so much?”

“That psycho is the Supreme Leader? Force, his mind is the most corrupted consciousness I’ve ever had the displeasure of coming into contact with, and I just barely brushed his mind.”

“Well you’ve certainly made an impression. He’s given specific orders for you not to be touched or harmed in any way until you are delivered to him in Hanna City.”

“He actually makes my skin crawl. But being down on Chandrila isn’t the worst case scenario, certainly leaves us with more options than being in space. There are a lot of rebels down on Chandrila you know. Princess Leia Organa was loved and respected throughout the galaxy, but particularly in Hanna City.  Your presence there might rally some of the troops.”

“Okay, that’s the beginning of a plan. But what do we do now, just sit with our dicks in our hands until planet fall?”

She can’t help the roar of laughter that escapes her. What a ridiculous turn of events!

“And here I thought this was going to be boring” she continues laughing, his confused scowl only serving to spur her on.

“I hope this is you just blowing off some steam, not a sign that you’ve fried a chip.”

“Oh no partner, I’m good to go.” She smiles as her mind starts working out their options once they get to Chandrila, and the beginnings of a plan start to formulate.

***

“Master Finn!”

He’s been dodging C3P0 for the better part of an hour. Finn has been busy trying to get in touch with Jess and Snap for days now, to no avail. Then he, Rose and Kaydel watched Hux’s announcement dumbfounded. They were no longer safe in Theed.  They needed to get back to lake country where the rest of the rebels were hiding.

And he hasn’t heard from Poe in almost 24 hours, which is unusual and unsettling.

“MASTER FINN!” C3P0 found him and he seems in full panic mode.

“What is it?”

“Master Finn! GG11 has been activated and is functioning.”

_How is this thing not scrap metal yet? Can droids get dementia?_

“What the fuck are you talking about threepeeoh? And please, the short version.”

“GG11 is Princess Leia’s hospitality droid at the Chandrila residence. She only answers to members of the Solo family.”

“And?”

“The only remaining member of the Solo family is …”

“Ben Solo! He’s hiding on Chandrila!”

“Yes, Master Finn. And as he is now an enemy of the First Order, much as we are, logic dictates that an alliance with him and the Knights of Ren would be mutually beneficial. Do you think this is why Mistress Rey is there?

“WHAT????”

“GG11 reported that Master Ben Solo, Wyatt Ren, Sunny Ren, Attari Ren and Miss Rey arrived at the penthouse in Hanna City yesterday.”

“Yesterday. YESTERDAY! What the hell threepeeoh!!!!! Why didn’t you tell me that right away?

“Sir, I’ve been trying to but you’ve been busy.”

“Maker, give me patience.” Finn pleads as his eyes lift to the skies and he grips his hands together, out of frustration but mostly to prevent himself from ringing C3P0’s neck.

This is a lot of information for him to process but they need to act quickly. Rey is in danger and he doesn’t have the time to wait.

“Rose! Connix!” Finn calls the girls into the room and relays the information he was just given, before he can even fully absorb it himself.

“We need help right away, from someone who knows exactly where they are.” The girls nod in agreement as he fires up his comm-link.

“General Calrissian? It’s Finn.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm BAAAACK! sorry about the absence guys! But I'm back from vacay now and I'll be back to regular updating!!
> 
> Thank you so much to my wonderful Beta Emily, who takes my nonsense and makes it legible, you are so wonderful friend!
> 
> While I was vacationing, I learned how to make a moodboard and thanks to MrsViolet, I also learned how to upload it! 
> 
> So....looks like pretty much everyone and their droid will be heading over to Chandrilla! And is anyone else surprised that the Knights of Ren have this kind of scandalous inner-group dynamic?
> 
> let me know your thoughts and I hope I didn't lose anyone while I was away!
> 
> have a wonderful weekend my lovelies and thank you for your support! <3


	30. Chapter 30

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kylo comes up with a plan and somehow smut happens!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you as always to my wonderful and amazing beta Emily!  
> There's smut in this chapter, basically the second half...be warned ;)

 

 

Kylo’s morning could not have gone any worse and for the first time in his adult life he was feeling embarrassed, happy, mortified but oddly at ease and secure – he was completely discombobulated. He was drinking his third cup of kaf for the day and enjoying a brief moment of solitude as the knights were out exploring the city, scouting for information.

Rey had fallen asleep on the sofa after the knights left, as had Pete the Trooper. Kylo couldn’t help a slight smirk taking in the scene and imagining what this would look like to an outsider if they had just walked in – Kylo Ren keeping vigil while the last Jedi and a storm trooper were having an afternoon nap on Leia Organa’s couch.

He had finally gotten to be with Rey in every way he had always wanted; it was not just about fucking her – although _that_ had been unbelievable and well worth the wait – it was about them shedding all their layers of pain, insecurity, hurt and baring their souls to each other.

Would it have been better if Attari and Sunny Ren had not been witness to everything? Ugh, he had entirely forgotten about the Force pulse (he’s never had to worry about it before, he’s never been with another Force user and he’d never had the Knights in such close proximity).

Would it had been better if Wyatt Ren hadn’t been there to completely lose his shit and confront him in front of everyone? Yes, he had not considered Wyatt’s reaction. Of course, he knew what Wyatt was going to say, after their awkward morning on Hoth just days earlier. He just couldn’t care less once Rey was on his lap, kissing him the way he’s been craving since their brief embrace in the crater on Jedha.

The revelations from Pete the Trooper had been very sobering. What is Hux up to? He needed to get a hold of Auburn Ren on Naboo and change the scope of her mission. They had to find out the purpose of the lab.

They also needed to find where Hux was keeping the camp of Force sensitive prisoners Attari had learned about on his last day on the Finalizer.

But first, he needed to get his head right. Being with Rey for the entire night had felt like he was spending time in a bubble he never wanted to leave, wrapped up in her warm light and crisp darkness, completely balanced.  He had enjoyed every second but being dedicated to her entirely had rounded his edges and split his focus, leaving him dangerously unaware.

His contemplation is interrupted as Attari walks in, the first to return from their recognizance mission.

“Kaf?”

“Just made some, here you go.” Kylo gets up from his stoop and fills a mug, handing it over to the expectant knight.

“This is a sight huh? Never in a million light years could I have predicted how things were going to change when we were summoned back from Sollust!”

Kylo huffs a small laugh. “Life is strange and so is the Force my friend.”

“Speaking of the Force; the Jedi needs a weapon. I assume that now that we are all enemies of the First Order we will be working together?”

“I haven’t asked her Attari. She may still wish to go back to the Resistance. I wouldn’t prevent her from leaving if that’s what she needed to do.”

“Maybe you wouldn’t but her maniac brother isn’t going to let that happen!” Attari’s laugh booms out of his chest and it makes Kylo smile, ever so awkwardly.

“Wyatt means well, he loves her and he doesn’t know what do to with it. We’re so used to functioning within the confines of the darkness. It’s hard to react to things in a sensible manner.”

“That was a sensible thing to say Kylo. But what about you, do you know what to do with it?”

“With?”

“Your love for her.”

Kylo’s head whips to where Rey is laying down, relieved to see that she is still fast asleep, the soft snores escaping her partly open lips confirming that.

“Don’t bother denying it Kylo, we all know it, and she probably does too. You might want to speak to her about it while you still have the chance. Force knows, we could all be dead come tomorrow with the way things are going.”

“It’s not as simple as that. Everything about this is beyond complicated.”

“Love is never easy but don’t waste an opportunity to make it known to her. You’ll regret it if you don’t; trust me.”

“You certainly have strong opinions on the subject Attari Ren.”

“My own experience has been limited and unfortunate.”

“Auburn?”

“You knew?”

“I don’t know why I keep having to say this to you guys, but I am Kylo fuckin Ren. You know? The most powerful Force user in the Galaxy, such and so forth? I felt your awakening to the darkness back at the academy. I just chose to never say anything about you all constantly bed hopping amongst yourselves because I frankly didn’t care to have those conversations.”

“So all that talk of no fraternizing…”

“Just bullshit. Like the rest of the rules of the Sith and the Jedi. The Guardians of the Whills need a new rule book. But we will write it together. It will not be mandated by one single individual. We will not repeat the mistakes of our forefathers.”

“Once we’re finished with Hux and the First Order we’ll have time for that. But you, Kylo, need to be forthcoming to Rey before any of that.”

Kylo is chewing on the inside of his lip nervously. He has only articulated his feelings for Rey to himself recently but he knows that he has been desperately in love with her for years - since she’d first taken the time to speak with him, treating him as a person over their bond, even if she had yelled at him and insulted him. The moment they had touched through the bond, he’d known. This woman owned him and he feared it.

He still does.

“Kylo” Attari says to him as he turns his head from the window where he was watching the ocean. “Don’t be afraid. She loves you too.”

Kylo’s heart was in his chest. He wasn’t a fool. He knew Rey felt something for him. But he doubted it was anything as all-consuming and soul-crushing as what he was feeling for her. So no, he would keep his mouth shut for now.

“Thank you, my friend.” Is all he responds to Attari.

The front door suddenly bursts open as Wyatt and Sunny barge their way inside, the ruckus startling Rey and Pete awake.

“They’re here! The First Order! We just saw one of the transports break atmo. A couple of merchants were talking about them taking up residence at the port in Saline.” Wyatt was shouting.

“Saline is only a half hour away by speeder; if there’s a chance that’s where they’re keeping the Force slaves we should check it out.” Sunny added, his tone of voice matching Wyatt’s in rambunctiousness.

“I’ll go.”

“No!” both Kylo and Wyatt exclaimed in Rey’s direction.

“Ok, just putting aside the fact that I wasn’t asking either of you for permission, why not? I’m much less conspicuous than four hulking dudes walking around in matching outfits.”

“Sweetheart, I wasn’t implying that you need my permission, it’s just that…you don’t have a saber and you need one before you head out.” Kylo could feel the Knights mentally smirking at his sudden change in tone.

Rey was biting her lip, contemplating his words with a seriousness expressed by her furrowed brows scrunching.

“Will you help me mend my saber?”

“My saber?”

“Kylo! It called to me, it belongs to me. I don’t want to have this fight with you again.”

She’s looking at him with such intensity, the words hissing through her clenched teeth and he gives in. Not because she intimidates him, but because he finds her so adorable when she’s angry.

“I looked at the pieces and we won’t be able to fix it; but we can use the kyber crystals to build you a new one.”

“Will you help me Ben?”

There it is again. _Ben._ It hasn’t escaped his attention the way _Ben_ had echoed through the four other minds in the room. Good to see Pete the Trooper is getting involved in all of these inner circle conversations…at some point he will have to discuss _Ben_ with Rey. Just as soon as _Kylo_ knows how he feels about _Ben._

“Yes. But you have to take the kyber halves and meditate with them alone, far from any of us. That way our energy won’t influence it.”

“Oh. Ok. That makes sense. Where could I go?”

“You could go down to the beach. This is the winter season here, there aren’t many people down there and it’s quiet.”

“Take Pete with you, for protection.” Wyatt chimed in and the former trooper flinched as the attention was drawn back onto him.

“Pete is going to need new clothes.” Rey says as she’s taking in Pete’s Stormtrooper uniform.

“Attari and I can go down to the shopping district. We all need to blend in a little bit better if we’re going to attempt to head out to Saline and stake out Hux’ shop.” Wyatt added.

Kylo nodded to the knights and they headed back out. Sunny sat down next to Pete attempting to get a sense of his battle skills. Not that they anticipated Rey getting into any kind of trouble over the few hours, but the idea of her being far enough from him that he can’t step in and defend her is unsettling.

_“MAKER NO!!!”_

He hadn’t noticed that Rey had left the room and a sense of dread is seeping through their bond. He looks over to Sunny, who’s eyes were gaped with questions.

“Force help whoever is fucking foolish enough to be in there with her!” Kylo shouts in Sunny’s direction while he runs over to Rey’s room.

His heart is in his throat again (or maybe still) and he can feel the adrenaline coursing through his veins, the darkness gathering like a thunderstorm.

Whoever is hurting her is going to die. A slow and painful death.

He flicks his wrist and the doors blow open.

She’s not there.

He can sense her in the bathroom and she’s a turmoil of emotions – shock, anger, pain. _She’s hurt._

“Rey? REY!!!”

He shouts as he breaks the bathroom door, knocking it down with a kick. An actual kick, not the Force. He’s seething, readying to tear apart whoever had the nerve to break in and hurt Rey from limb to limb.

Kylo was prepared for a number of scenarios, but what he found shook him to the core.

Rey was standing in the middle of the bathroom, _stark naked,_ with her back turned to him and bits of GG11 were lying on the floor, as the droid was callously destroyed.

“What. Happened.” Kylo stammers, trying to concentrate on whatever threat had her going through the emotions and not on how the sight of her naked behind makes him feel.

“That fucking GG unit is a menace!”

“What?” It’s taking all of his strength to continue this conversation with her. The only reason he’s not walking over to her and bending her over the bath tub is the possibility of an intruder still being here.

Rey calls a towel to her with the Force and mercifully covers herself with it. He can focus now, although the sight of her when she turns around, only wearing the towel, still makes him shudder and break into goosebumps.

“Rey, what happened? Why are you naked? Who hurt you?”

“This is so embarrassing” she puts one of her hands up to her face, blushing. Which is incredibly confusing to him and he is no closer to calming down.

“What happened to GG11?”

“I smashed her.”

“What?! Why?”

“Oh Force! I will put her back together.”

“Rey, for fuck’s sake, please would you just tell me who hurt you and where he is so I can fucking kill him and get back to my kaf?!”

“There’s no one here, just GG11.”

“Ok I am so confused now, because I could feel you through the bond and you were distressed.”

She huffs a long exhale and then explains “I just thought, since I was going to the beach and maybe wearing a bathing suit, that I would get GG11 to groom me. We had a droid on Hoth and Rose and I always got groomed. But GG11 is a sadist.”

There is no intruder. There is no fight. But beyond that, he is at a complete loss of words.

His lack of understanding is obviously irritating Rey. She huffs again and drops her towel, revealing herself to him. She is completely _bare!_

_Force help me._

“That fucking droid doesn’t understand grooming, it waxed _everything_ off…excuse me, are you actually laughing at me Kylo? Did you forget the last time you and I were in a bathroom together?”

He was laughing. He was bent over, his hands clenching his thighs as he let out howls of laughter, tears streaking his face.

Rey was indignant, tugging roughly at the towel as she wrapped herself up furiously.

“Everything ok in there Kylo, do you need a hand?”

“No! No, don’t come in here Sunny, everything is fine.”

He’s trying to settle himself down, not risking another throat punch from Rey.

“You know…that’s not a terrible look for you.” He says to her as devious thoughts start taking over where the murderous thoughts were taking hold just a few minutes ago.

She’s now blushing, suddenly aware that she’s flashed her naked body to him in her rage.

“Thanks…I guess?”

“Wyatt and Attari went to get some new clothes for all of us and Sunny is babysitting Pete so we have a bit of time to ourselves.”

“And? Do you want to spar a bit?” she answers innocently.

“Um, no actually” he opens the bond and floods it with images of what exactly he has in mind for their afternoon. Her reaction is perfect.

She’s blushing furiously and biting her lip.

“There’s no doors.”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“Sunny will hear.”

“You’ll just have to be quiet sweetheart.”

She seems to have run out of objections as she finally lifts those beautiful eyes to him and drops her towel.

Kylo closes the distance between them immediately, bending slightly so he could seal his lips to hers. She welcomes him with enthusiasm, her curious tongue slipping into his mouth immediately.

Their kissing is not sweet, or slow; it is a storm of lips and tongues and teeth, both of them growling and pawing at each other.

His hands are exploring her entire body, greedily cupping her firm breasts and pinching her pebbled nipples between his thumbs and index fingers, eliciting a soft gasp from her.

He bends over and takes one into his mouth, sucking and grazing it with his teeth. He knows he can be a little rough with her, he’s sensed her taking pleasure in it the night before. But that will wait, he’s on a mission now.

He trails kisses down her belly while he kneels before her. If she wanted him, he would spend his entire life kneeling before her, worshiping her.

He takes a second to peer up at her face while his tongue traces one of her hip bones, savoring how wickedly sexy she is right now, under his touch.

His hands settle on her ass, cupping it as he skips the back of her thighs and drapes her right leg over his shoulder. He has a perfect view of her soft, tight little pussy, already dripping for him. Because of him.

The thought makes him hard as a rock, his pants suddenly uncomfortable.

He kisses her softly and she hisses, her hands clenching through his hair. He’s tracing her lips with his tongue, enjoying the new soft feel of her on his lips.

“Stop teasing” she whines and that brings a smile to his lips. She’s right.

He flattens his tongue and sweeps it over her entire pussy, stopping at the firm pink bud, where he licks fast circles, making her pant. He slips two fingers in her at once and he can feel through the bond that she wasn’t expecting the fullness but she’s liking it, grinding her hips into his mouth.

He can feel her orgasm building quickly, as her thighs are clenching around his face and her pussy walls are squeezing his fingers. She’s breathing quickly and she’s trying so hard to stay quiet but it’s not working.

As he sucks roughly on her clit, she finally keens and cums with a loud gasp, her legs trembling and collapsing into his arms.

She’s panting onto his neck, kissing him softly and nuzzling into his hair.

“I love it when you cum for me sweetheart” he croons to her and he can feel his cock throbbing as her wetness soaks through his pants.

“Rey, I want to fuck you.”

He takes her low moan and nip of his ear as permission. He unzips his pants with one hand as he holds her up with the other and lowers her onto his cock, filling her up.

He gives her a brief moment to get used to him, but it’s more for him to keep himself together and not cum instantly at the feel of her hot, tight cunt taking him in to the hilt.

She looks so beautiful like that, entirely naked in his arms, stuffed with his cock, panting and moaning.

He won’t last long.

He encourages her to move, holding onto her hips and she starts bouncing on his lap, her walls clenching in on him again as she slides up and back down onto him, setting an intoxicating pace.

He snakes his hand between them, reaching for her swollen clit, applying just enough pressure to send her over the edge again, relishing the feeling of her tightening up around his hardness as she tips her head back and bares her throat to him.

He wants to bite her there, to mark her. So everyone knows she is…

“Mine” he growls and cums inside her, his vision blurring temporarily.

He pulls out of her and she stands up, giving him another look at her pussy, now swollen from him fucking her. He watches his cum drip out of her and for whatever reason, he loves the sight.

He’s marked her.

He finally sits up, gives her a soft kiss as she heads into the shower and he does his pants up.

He should probably ask her about birth control; if they’re going to keep fucking like this, it would be the responsible thing to do. Not that he would mind giving her a baby that was part hers and part his and… _where the fuck did that come from!_

He shakes his head and goes to leave, picking up pieces of GG11 off the tiled floor.

As he walks out into the kitchen he suddenly remembers that he, in fact, had not discussed with Rey the Force pulse and how to keep her sensations out of the Force while they’re having sex.

_Shit._

Pete the trooper is sipping a cup of kaf, completely unaware that Sunny Ren is fuming on the couch just a few steps away.

He feels the Force smack at the back of his head.

_Fair._

“Sun, I’m sorry, I promise that will be the last time. I swear!”

“I guess Rey wasn’t attacked by an intruder then?”

“Um…no. Not by an intruder.” And smiles sheepishly, making Sunny clench his jaw. “Give me a hand putting GG11 back together would you?”

“I’ll do that while you go change your pants.” Sunny is eyeing him with annoyance and Kylo cringes.

_Is it still a walk of shame if it’s inside your own home?_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry the updates have been a bit less regular than usual, just summer and RL getting busy. I'm getting married in October and shit is starting to go down. I'm back to updating once a week though, and the action is picking up in the story now!   
> And yes, this chapter was brought to you by sunday-funday bevies ;)
> 
> Thank you so much for sticking with me and this story and I appreciate all the comments you leave me :)  
> come find me on Tumblr - I live there now!  
> https://riaria84.tumblr.com/


	31. Chapter 31

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey finally gets a weapon; a few surprises are in store for the Knights of Ren.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for coming back and reading and always being so wonderful with your comments!  
> As always, thank you to my wonderful beta Emily!

Rey and her squad of body guards – Pete the Trooper, Luna and Max – headed out to the beach leaving Kylo and Sunny Ren in the apartment to plot their recognizance mission. Their objective was to gain more information about what they presume to be the First Order’s detention center for Force sensitives.

Sunny and Kylo are wisely preparing for several scenarios, including the likely possibility that they will have to be involved in combat. The last time they went on a fact-finding mission like this, Wyatt ended up getting shot and Rey almost tipped to the dark side, so Kylo was intent on never going into a situation that unprepared again.

Rey let out a heavy sigh thinking back to that day and how she had felt, how she had gone right into the cold embrace of the darkness. Had it not been for Kylo reaching out for her in the abyss, she would have fallen.

She shudders at the thought and tries to clear her mind with purpose.

She’s been wanting to mend her saber for the last year and a half and she had nearly given up on the prospect when Kylo suggested earlier in the day that she would probably be able to manage it now. She was thrilled.

The walk down to the beach was short, maybe five minutes until her feet touched the sand. This was not the hot, grainy, irritating sand of Jakku though; it was silky and cool and it felt like heaven on her feet.

Pete the Trooper was obviously as impressed. Even without the ability to read his thoughts she could feel waves of happiness, relief and curiosity coming off him. She could tell by the look on his face he was happy. Or as happy as someone in his position could be. She made herself a promise to get to know him better; it may be part of her destiny to be surrounded by former troopers and broken things.

“Pete, I never apologized to you.”

“About what?”

“About Jedha. It’s not an excuse but I was having an incredibly bad day.”

“Forget about it. I’ve been treated much worse Jedi Rey.” Her heart twinges at his words and she can’t help but think of her best friend who she hasn’t seen in weeks and the sad and empty life he had before leaving the First Order.

Her sympathy transforms into rage when she realizes there are tens of thousands of men and women like Finn and Pete who are trapped in the Order, without any hope of a better life. The thought sickens her but she can’t give in to those feelings, she needs to remain balanced.

They walk up to the edge of the water and let the warm water cover their toes, watching the sun set in a glowing ball of crimson. Even the vulptices are calm, taking in the new sensation of the tiny waves crashing gently on their paws.

This place is picture-perfect for meditation. She takes off her tunic and pants, then sits in the wet sand by the edge of the water, legs crossed and waits for the cover of night to begin her communion with the Force.

Pete and the vulptices give her wide berth, walking in silent companionship up the beach in several directions, marking an invisible perimeter around her.  She smirks just briefly at that; if a real threat were to come, she would be the one to save their communal skins. But, they can at least keep watch and if there are any people approaching, they will handle that intrusion without her having to break concentration.

Rey takes out the pieces from the broken saber and removes the crystals. She holds them in each of her hands resting on her knees, takes in a deep salty breath and closes her eyes, focusing her mind on the sound of the crashing waves.

The Force is quiet here, but she can feel the life in the city, the life in the sea and the nature around her. It’s not the loud hum of new life like she had felt on Jedha. It’s calm and steady. In a strange way, very much akin to Ach-To.

As she meditates, she thinks of everything that has happened since she was left on Hoth, going through the entire spectrum of emotions she had felt. Her family leaving her alone on Hoth had been a pit of despair, until Kylo arrived and confused her with his presence and affection. Finding out that Wyatt was her brother had hit her so hard and it took her shattered heart and mended it. When she almost lost him, she had nearly drowned in her hate and blood lust. But none of these sentiments could equal how she felt after last night, when she and Kylo had finally – FINALLY- been able to satisfy their physical need for each other.

It wasn’t just a physical need though. The Force around them was finally at peace, happy they weren’t fighting its will any longer. She had been a fool all along to think he was her enemy; he was right when he asked her to rule by his side – although he had said it in such a horrible manner, not truly understanding what he was asking her at the time.

If he asked her again, she would take his hand. She would never leave his side again. Because….

 _All is as the Force wills it_.

“Because I love him.”

As she said the words out loud, she felt a weight being lifted off her. She hadn’t realized her confusion had been burdening her and muddling her mind.

Her thoughts were crystal clear and she was able to finally focus on the saber, picturing every piece of metal, every screw and wire and the way they fit together to create her weapon, each facet tied by an individual golden string.

She never opened her eyes; she didn’t need to. Using the Force, she levitated the pieces and the crystals and asked the Force to help her mend it all together, tying the individual tatters into one single, sturdy construction.

_Open your eyes Rey. Your training is completed._

She did as the familiar voice bid her, but there was no one around her. She’d heard that voice before, down in Maz’s castle on Takodana.

She could feel the new saber intact in her palms.

She did it!

Not quite a Jedi, definitely not a Sith. Something else – _something_ Grey.

She had lost track of time and just noticed that it was pitch black outside. The only light she could see was the glow of the full moon bouncing off the sleeping crystal critters’ fur. Pete the Trooper was asleep in a ball, soft snores escaping his half open mouth.

_So much for my bodyguards._

Before heading back though, she needs to see it. She can’t wait until she gets back.

Holding the saber at an arm’s length from her body, like she had that first time she lit it on Starkiller, she turns it on and is overjoyed at the familiar hum of the plasma.

_Unbelievable._

***

After she put away her saber, Rey woke her companions and they headed back to their temporary home, without rushing.

She could sense Pete wanted to ask her so many questions, but he was afraid.

“Pete, you have nothing to fear from me. Or the Knights. Or even Kylo Ren.”

He looks at her and gives her a nervous smile.

“That will take some getting used to Rey, we all lived in such fear of him for years. Can I ask you something?”

“Shoot.”

“I’m sure it’s a long story, but how did you end up being his girlfriend?”

“Girlfriend?” the word startles her. Was she his girlfriend? Was that a strong enough word to describe what the two of them had? Did he think of her that way? And most importantly, was there any way he felt about her the way she felt about him…

“I don’t know if I’m his girlfriend. But he and I share something truly special that I can’t wholly describe.” She then turns to face him and smiles “The way you see him though, that is not the man he truly is. I can’t explain it, but please trust me that he will not harm you.”

He looks at her with wide eyes and smiles as they get onto the elevator in the apartment building.

The Force quivers around her, giving her a warning again and this time she heeds it.

“Someone’s here Pete.”  Someone intent on harming Kylo. _Over my dead body._

Pete takes his blaster out of its holder and stands in attack mode, mirroring Rey’s crouch. The vulptices are growling as the elevator doors open.

 _Rey, don’t do anything foolish._ She could hear Kylo’s voice in her head but she wasn’t listening.

”They’re in the apartment.”

With a nod to Pete, she bares her teeth and smashes the doors open, ready to kill, turning on her saber – double sided, like the other Knights of Ren – but the plasma glowed red on one side and a crisp clean white on the other.

Balance.

It would occur to her later when thinking about this moment, how amusing it is that she and Kylo had the same approach to protecting each other, and it seemed to involve destruction of property.

She was ready to fight, but she was entirely unprepared for this.

Standing in the living room with blasters drawn on Kylo and Sunny, were Finn, Rose, Connix and Lando Calrissian!

“Oh Force!!!” she squealed as turns her weapon off and approaches them cautiously.

“Rey, you’re alright?!” Finn sounds both relieved and surprised.

“Yes of course! How did you get here? And what are you doing here?”

“We came to rescue you. Why is your saber half red? And …how are you alive?” Rose seems confused but under that, a layer of anger, directed at Kylo.

This is going to be a tough conversation.

“Kaydel, please lower your weapon.” Sunny was on his knees with his arms up in submission while Kaydel had her blaster pressed hard against his temple.

Rey knew it was only because of her that Kylo and Sunny were playing nice. They could easily disarm the four lovable fools who came here following their misguided sense of duty to her. Well, three lovables and a question mark. She didn’t trust Lando to begin with and his presence here hasn’t helped him gain favor with her.

Kaydel does as she’s told but she still keeps her blaster aimed squarely at Sunny’s back as he stands up and turns to wink at her.

“How did you know I was here?”

“C3P0. I don’t know if you remember this, but he is connected with all the droids who were in Leia’s service.”

“I told you GG11 was a fucking menace!” Rey snarled in Kylo’s direction, making him smirk, to the complete irritation and confusion of the Resistance fighters.

“Rey, please. Tell me what the fuck is going on. Are you _friends_ with Kylo Ren now? You do remember what he did to us, to you?” Finn is now pleading with her, and she hates that she has to be the one who upsets him but this needs to be said.

“Finn, it’s so complicated I don’t know where to start. Kylo saved my life. Twice. If it wasn’t for him and Wyatt I would be dead, buried under snow and rocks on Hoth.”

“And Wyatt is?” Kaydel asks, eyes not moving from Sunny who has stood up to his height slowly and is facing her. Rey has gotten so comfortable with him, she’s forgotten that he looms large, like a Titan over the entire galaxy, a head taller than Kylo even.

Kaydel isn’t intimidated at his show of power. _She ought to be._

“Wyatt…is one of the Knights of Ren.” She pauses to gather her courage, looking at the floor then meeting Finn’s anticipating eyes. “And my brother.”

A choir of gasps was all that she heard filling the silence in the room.

 “Rey, what are you talking about? How can you have a brother when you don’t even have parents! And conveniently he’s a henchman for Kylo Ren? I don’t buy it!”

He turns to face Kylo with a look of complete rage “You did something to her! You brainwashed her into believing this bullshit story so you could keep her with you and use her power.”

“Don’t. Push me. FN 2187.” Kylo hissed menacingly.

“Rey don’t you see? He’s using you!” He’s pleading with her as he closes in on Kylo.

“Finn stop!” She’s trying to shield her friend but the sense of protectiveness for Kylo is more urgent and all-encompassing of her being. When Finn pushes his blaster in Kylo’s chest she just reacts, flinging it out of his hands with the Force and onto the floor, leaving him shocked.

“Oh! Now I understand!” Lando raises his eyebrows and grins, the first words he’s said so far.

Rey glares at him and with a flick of her wrist flings him across the room.

“That’s no way to treat our guests kid” The booming voice coming from the doorway startles the three Resistance fighters, who turn around to see the dark figures of Wyatt and Attari Ren and hear the hiss of crimson plasma coming from their double-sided sabers.

They are starting to realize they made a mistake coming here this unprepared.

Rey’s pondering their current predicament. Even for the Resistance, whose members always acted more on impulse than with actual, tactical planning, their rescue mission seems inadequately prepared. If they knew she was here with Kylo, how could they think the three of them would even stand a chance?

“Now, now we are all friends here, lower your blasters girls and we can have a nice chat” Attari croons in Rose and Kaydel’s direction, then gently pulls the weapons from their fingers.

“Rey, I can’t believe you’re one of them. You’re a traitor!” Finn’s voice cracks as he’s looking at her with judgement.

“A _traitor_? You fucking left me! YOU LEFT ME! You of all people Finn! You were my brother and you didn’t even hesitate!” She knows she’s being unfair. She knows that maybe if she hadn’t been busy fucking Kylo Ren’s brains out all night she probably would have had some time for introspection and dealt with these lingering feelings of abandonment and the layer of resentment that hid just under the surface of her tough outer layer.

But she hadn’t and so here she is, losing her temper. Again.

Finn recoils as if she slapped him and Rose moves closer to her, briefly clutching his fingers on the way.

“Now listen here!” she’s pointing her tiny finger up in Rey’s face, her face filled with fury only a woman standing up for her man would have. “We didn’t want to leave you, but we couldn’t risk him knowing where we were going. We were going to come back for you! We came to get you! I didn’t know you’d be hanging out with your bestie Kylo and the Knights of fucking Ren and whoever this guy is?”

She’s talking about Pete who is quietly observing the commotion, in awe of being in the presence of the most famous Stormtrooper who ever lived.

“This is Pete. Pete the Trooper. Apparently, you’re some sort of legend amongst the ranks Finn. You’ve got these guys plotting and defecting every which way.” Sunny speaks from behind him and makes Finn’s eyes dart with incredulity between the two men.

“Look here Rebels, we are all on the same side now. Whether you like it or not, we’re all enemies of the First Order. We need to fight together to break them and save all the troopers and command officers who are desperately trying to leave. There’s an imprisonment center of sorts about half an hour away, where Hux is keeping and torturing Force sensitives. He’s planning something disturbing, we have pieces of information but not the complete picture. I learned when I broke into the restricted R&D center on the Finalizer that he has a lab working on a weaponized neurotoxin. A lab on Naboo. All these aspects are tied together but to what end?” All the ears in the room were listening to Attari Ren speak.

Finn sighs and slumps his shoulders, rubbing a hand on his face out of frustration. He starts laughing hysterically, until tears are rolling down his cheek.

“Not the reaction I was expecting.” Wyatt quirks an eyebrow with mirth.

It’s just a half second too late.

Rey catches Finn’s loud thoughts before the transparisteel windows shatter and a couple dozen fighters rappel into the room using grappling hooks from the rooftop.

Just as Rey ignites her saber and drops into a defensive stance, taking her place among the circle of knights, the sound of more troops coming up through the stairwell rings in her ears. They’re outnumbered, but that’s never stopped them before.

She was not expecting the two masked fighters in the vanguard of the attack who lit their red sabers.

Instead of attacking, the groups stand and look at each other, confused.

“C’mmaron, Alix Ren. Good of you to join us. You could’ve reached me by comm link.”

The two fighters extinguish their weapons and take a knee before Kylo, removing their masks.

“Master! We thought the girl was keeping you prisoner.”

“So you joined the Resistance?”

“Chewie!” Finn shouts as the Wookie makes his way through the fighters. “What the hell is going on? How did you know we were here and why did you bring _more_ Knights of Ren with you?”

“Everyone, let’s put our weapons away. We have a long night ahead of us.” Attari is the voice of reason once again as Rey tries to make sense of the last ten minutes.

The spacious apartment is all of a sudden very crowded.

 _It’s probably a good thing I got my fill of him this morning._ Her thoughts drift to Kylo’s mouth on her, the way he had felt under her as he was stretching her and filling her up, his beautiful face and the feral growl that slipped through his parted soft lips when as he came…

A loud chorus of groans interrupts her stray thoughts. Wyatt squeezed a glass sitting on the table so hard with his hand that it smashed to pieces. The two Knights she didn’t know were gaping at her with utter disbelief.

_Sweetheart..._

Oh good! She was back to projecting everything into the Force. Handy thing to be doing with six powerful Force wielders around. She rolls her eyes and sighs. She never said she was perfect!

_A very long night indeed._

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today is Canada day! So I hope you all enjoyed this, I did not write this today because it's been a very fun sunday-funday as it's a long weekend up here! 
> 
> Sorry for the delay and if you were wondering what I've been doing, I got caught up in writing prompts (if you want to read them, they are "Wool Socks and Snowflakes" - smut warning applies though!  
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/14947803/chapters/34635948   
> I also have an AU on the go, it's a little lighter (it's Canadian Reylo) but Wyatt, Attari and Sunny are in it as well - "Don't feed the bears"  
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/14747840/chapters/34097741  
> This is my first born though!  
> Thank you so much for reading and commenting and being amazing!!   
> Come say hi on Tumblr - I'm RiaRia84 on there <3


	32. Chapter 32

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's a lot of people in this house!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys! I'm sorry I've been delinquent! To make it up to you, I did a new mood board for this chapter with the KOR and resistance kids and I am posting without sending to the lovely Emily for Beta just so I can get this out to you asap!  
> I will be better at these updates I promise!!

 

He would laugh at how awkward Rey has made it for everyone if it was anything other than his sex face and naked body at various angles that had been projected all over the Force.

The apartment was full, jam-packed full of people who are declared enemies, but now united by one single question, shouted out loud and in thought almost in unison – “What the fuck is going on?”

“Alright, now that everyone’s put away their weapons, let’s talk” he needs to take back control of this entire situation. The knights and Rey immediately respond to his command and he can feel them relax.

His uncles Lando and Chewie seem to be at ease as well; he will deal with all the issues their presence is bringing up at another time. His heart leaping in his throat for just a moment there as he dared to refer to them as his _uncles_ is at the top of that list.

But why deal with this now when he could deal with it later? Or never!

The Resistance fighters were fired up though, rearing to go and thirsting for blood. His blood, to be more precise.

_Oh good, I was just starting to get used to not being loathed for every breath that I take._

“So where do we start. I’m sure you all have a lot of questions, but so do I. And since your grand entry broke my house, the first thing we need to do is fix these transparisteel windows.”

“Master Solo, would you like me to summon the maintenance droids.”

He hasn’t heard that voice in years and it brings him back to when he and Leia and Han were actually happy, before their bubble of domestic bliss had inevitably burst in Ben Solo’s face”.

“Thank you C3P0.”

He can see how equally shocking it is for the Resistance fighters and the knights to hear him answer politely to that name.

He just rolls his eyes and moves over to where Rey is standing, wrapping his arm protectively around her waist.

“Second, I know you must have a lot of questions but we have very little time. We need to get to Salline before morning comes. The First Order is here. We need to get down there to see what they are planning and alter those plans significantly.”

The resistance fighters are suspicious still, but Finn seems to be on board with this. He is the key to the Rebels and the key to Finn is Rey.

_I will talk to him babe._

_Babe?_

He cocks an eyebrow and scrunches his nose at her; he doesn’t love that.

_Not babe then. Whatever, your worship!_

He smirks and wonders how long has it been since those words had been heard around this apartment.

Rey breaks away from his touch and closes the distance between her and Finn, who regards her with a confusing mix of suspicion and affection. Kylo can feel Rey’s hesitation and fear of rejection spilling into the Force around them, but they will be fine. Her friend cares for her in the same way Wyatt does, all she needs to do is reach out to him. They’ll be alright.

“Guys, will you come up to the roof top with me so we can have a proper catch up? So much has happened in the past couple of weeks and we need some privacy.” Finn and the girls whose names he has immediately forgotten follow Rey out the door, glancing back weary that this may be some sort of trap.

Fair enough; that’s exactly what he would think had he been in their shoes.

“Now I would love to know how two of my Knights ended up leading a rebel ambush on my home.” He turns to face C’mmaron and Alix without letting go of Rey.

“Master…”

“No more of that. You don’t need to call me Master and you don’t need my permission to do anything or say anything. Not that you ever really did, you lot basically did as you wanted the entire time I’ve known you.”

C’mmaron’s blue eyes balk at him and Alix starts with a smirk.

“We rescued Wexley and Pava from Loth wolves. They were out there on a recruiting mission and we saved their skins so they owe us.” She winks at Pava who offers up a friendly nod.

“While we were in the company of these rebels, we had the pleasure of watching Armitage Hux throne himself Supreme Leader of the First Order and see our faces plastered all over the holo net.”

“We figured we would be better off if we joined forces with the rebels and live to fight another day. Which seems to have been a popular option.” C’mmaron angles her chin towards the empty air to Kylo’s right, were Rey had been standing just moments past.

Kylo nods his head in approval of the two knights’ decision; they needed more allies. C’mmaron and Alix had embraced their duality as Guardians just as easily as Wyatt, Attari and Sunny had. He and Rey are the last to struggle with the Darkness.

They’ll deal with that together, later. For now, he has to focus.

“Ok, I get all that. But how did you know we would be on Chandrila?” the curiosity is practically flowing in waves off him.

C’mmaron looks at Wyatt and winks. _What’s with everyone winking, is this a thing?_

“Alix and I went to Bespin with Snap and Jess. We were thinking that it was risky since the First Order was planning on moving its headquarters there but as it turns out, that was just you Kylo. Hux doesn’t seem to have the same esteem for a planet-side permanent command center. It seems he’s concentrating his efforts on whatever it is that he’s plotting, spending all of his time on the Finalizer.”

While C’mmaron was talking, Kylo was taking inventory of what he was feeling around the room; the rebels were tired but anxious, the knights were amped to get into a dog fight and Lando and Chewie were happy. Not happy exactly…hopeful?

“When Finn reached out to Lando and advised him of what was happening, we just assumed that you were being held hostage here. He didn’t mention to us that Wyatt, Sunny and Attari were here as well. We were coming for you but…”

“You needed a ride. This wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been swindled by a pair of gorgeous girls!” Lando laughs. His zest for life and optimism in every situation has been something Kylo had always admired about him. Although he would never admit it to his face.

Wyatt laughs too; the timid chuckle quickly turns into an all-out holler as he places his hands on his hips and bends over at the knees, the stress of the day finally making its way out of his system.

“So let me get this straight. You joined up with Kylo Ren’s uncles and the rebels, so you could get a ride over to Hana City, where you thought he was being held captive by my baby sister?”

Both C’mmaron and Alix are dumbstruck.

“Sister!?”

Kylo is beginning to think Wyatt is enjoying scandalizing everyone with this revelation. This is the second time they’re having to go through this entire song and dance.

Sunny and Attari seem to be on the same page as they sit down, lighting up.

“You’re fucking smoking?” Alix and C’mmaron look at them with incredulity.

“Yup.” Sunny answers as he takes a drag and blows out smoke rings.

A couple of the rebels take this as a que and sit down, one of them joining the two knights smoking. Pete the Trooper sits next to Sunny but his entire attention seems to be focused on Pava.

“Do you know how bad that is for your health, for your body?” C’mmaron seems to be more appalled by his behavior than it had ever occur to Kylo to be.

“Kylo, are you seeing this?” she continues, pointing her finger at him, eyes wide with anticipation.

He just shrugs his shoulders in lieu of an actual response.

“You know C’mmaron, Knights of Ren who live in transparisteel castles should not throw rocks.” Sunny’s attempt at modernizing the old expression doesn’t take, although he is very much on the nose. They all have vices and secrets – poorly kept secrets as is – and none of them care to discuss or defend their choices in an open forum.

“What. The. Fuck. Rey the Jedi is your sister? How?”

Kylo can excuse Alix’ outburst, even if they are just feeding into Wyatt’s new found sense of dramatics. He’s got an audience now as the entire room is waiting with baited breath as he stands up and begins his now rehearsed story.

The entire re-telling, complete with details about the rescue on Hoth, the fight on Jedha and the information they had just recently gathered takes the better part of an hour.

Finally, getting a chance to speak, Kylo steers the discussion towards strategy, hoping to avoid the other questions that are on the knight’s minds. Questions regarding the nature of his relationship to Rey that he doesn’t want to answer just yet.

“We need more numbers before we can face Hux. We cannot face him in open space, he has too much fire power up there. If we could lure him planet side somewhere and increase our numbers, we stand a good chance to defeat him.”

“The Force Sensitives they are holding in the detention center in Selline could add to our numbers.” Attari gets right back into knight mode, rearing to talk tactics.  

“We can’t let the First Order have them and use them for whatever their sinister purpose might be.”

“Sunny, have you been in touch with Auburn at all?”

Sunny’s face darkens with heavy emotion and Kylo can sense that he is worried about the knight whom, for all intents and purposes, is his sister.

“No. I’ve tried contacting her but it’s radio silence on her end. And since she’s never taken the time to practice using the Force in any way, any attempt I’ve made to reach out to her that way has hit a wall. I would love to be able to get her from Naboo and bring her into the group again. There is no reason for her to be there anymore.”

Sunny is right; he needs all the Knights in the same place if they are going to come out of hiding and take on the First Order and Hux head on. And seeing how the rebels are now in his home, there is no purpose for Auburn on Naboo.

“We can’t all stay here though; it was risky for the six of us to be here, contained in this apartment, but now that the entire remainder of the rebel fleet is landed on our roof, it’s just a matter of time for Hux to find us.”

“Where to then Kylo?” Wyatt is rearing to go, as are the rebels.

Attari is running his hands over his face, deep in thought. “We still have our transports on Jedha, we could head back there?”

“We could go back to the base on Hoth.” Rey’s voice rings like a bell and all attention shifts to her and Finn as they re-emerge in the discussion. Finn seems relieved, clearly no longer under the impression that Rey’s mind has been manipulated in any way.

Wyatt just groans and Kylo doesn’t disagree with his reaction. _Fucking Hoth._

“I know ok, I know. Hoth sucks. But the Falcon is still there and so is Wyatt’s ship. We’re going to need a lot of room to house these people, especially once we rescue the prisoners tonight. We need to regroup and train and strategize properly. The shoot first approach we’ve always followed doesn’t work. Hux is too smart and he’s got a lot of moves ahead of us.”

Kylo is beaming with pride at her confidence and the way she’s being so outspoken, commanding the attention of the entire room. She truly is special.

“The Knights of Ren will go to Salline. All of us.” Had Rey just counted herself as one of his Knights?

He regards her with incredulity and doesn’t dare ask the question out loud. Kylo doesn’t dare hope that she’s doing this for him. He doesn’t dare to hope that she might love him as much as he loves her.

“What did you just say?” Rey’s sparkling eyes are wide with surprise, seemingly forgetting there is an entire room full of people around them, hushed suddenly, waiting for him to speak.

“I…ummm…” he can’t seem to get the words out as she’s quickly closing the space between them, now standing mere inches from his discombobulated self, her eyes scanning his entire face, studying him in detail.

“Fuck. This isn’t how I wanted to talk to you about this Rey.” He wants to look away but he can’t; she has him pinned with her gaze and he feels hypnotized as she whispers:

“Say it.”

The words tumble out of his mouth, as if his body was no longer able to contain them for another moment.

“I love you.” He takes both her hands in his and rests his forehead on hers, keeping his eyes open, his entire being waiting for her to say something. _Now she shields her thoughts._

“I love you too, Kylo. So much!”

He’s astounded and takes a step back to regard her, to ensure he’s heard her correctly, to be certain that she’s actually said the words.

“For Force sake’s Kylo! Would you just kiss her already? We have places to be, gingers to kill.” Wyatt’s voice comes as a complete surprise, seeing how he was crushing glass wear with his bare hands at the thought of them together.

“Did you to switch brains or something because you have zero shielding capabilities right now. And, just because I’m ok with my sister being your girlfriend or supreme cuteness of the Knights of Ren or whatever her official status may be from now on, doesn’t mean that I ever want to know what you two are up to. Let alone hear or see it.”

All the knights nod in unison and even without being Force Sensitives, it seems the rebels and Pete the Trooper are all finally on the same page.

The Force around them is calm and light, all their tensions apparently relieved, at least for the time being.

He obliges, softly taking Rey’s face in his hands and sealing his lips to hers. This was by no means the perfect romantic gesture he had planned for this moment, but being able to say the words out loud and having her say them back, in front of his knights and her friends meant that it was official.

Rey was his, and he belonged to her.

Always.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a bit tough to write, there are so many people in this house and so many things they need to talk about!  
> We'll make a quick stop over on the roof next update to see what transpired between Rey and her Resistance peeps and then back to the action!  
> Thank you so much for sticking with me and this story you guys! every comment makes me so happy and I love hearing what you think!


	33. Chapter 33

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The knights of Ren go on a road trip and find old friends!  
> Finn and Wyatt deal with their possessive feelings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to the wonderful Emily for her beta services :)  
> And you guys - thank you! For your patience, for your kudos and comments and reading! you've stayed with me for 33 chapters which is just mind boggling to me!

The cool Chandrilla night surrounded them and the salty sea air permeated his clothes, reaching onto his skin and softening all his edges. If this wasn’t such a tense and messed up situation, Finn would find this truly enjoyable.

But here they are, face to face with Rey, whom they came to rescue and in turn found that she had switched sides, turned to the dark side. She was furious with them for leaving her, for a purpose that ended up being a completely useless and failed mission.

Not only had Kylo Ren found her, but he had turned her heart and corrupted her mind.

“He didn’t.” Rey answers his thoughts as if he’d spoken out loud, to the heightened curiosity of Kaydel and Rose.

“Wow, you’ve gotten so much stronger with the mind reading stuff Rey but… you’re so dark. What did he do to you?”

She looks at them with such eerie calmness, it takes him back a bit. Is this the same jittery girl he’d tried to rescue in the market place at Niima outpost? This woman standing in front of him is a confident, fierce warrior. Her clothes say Rebel but everything else about her demeanor, her attitude, _her saber for Force sakes_ – all of it screams Dark Side.

“You guys, I didn’t turn. I’ve always had darkness in me, you know this. Kylo Ren just woke it when he first interrogated me and pierced my mind, but it was my own darkness that called to his. Just as his light called to mine. We never understood the bond we shared until he came to me on Hoth. He didn’t manipulate me or mind trick me; I am just as powerful as he is.”

Rose stares at her with wide eyes and her voice squeaks “You are in love with him.”

Rey doesn’t say anything, although her eyes are darting back and forth as if she’s just realized an indisputable truth about herself. “Oh Force Rey, you are in love with Kylo Ren. Does he feel the same about you? Did he turn?”

Rey reaches out and intertwines her fingers with his.

“No one turned per se; we just met in the middle. All the Knights of Ren are grey; neither light nor dark. They are Guardians of the Wills and they serve the Force. And I suppose I am as well. I can’t explain it in a way that makes sense, but as soon as I accepted the dark side of me, the Force was finally content. It helped me clear my mind, it stopped transporting us through its webs unforeseen and It let me mend the saber.”

She looks at all three of them and smiles as she continues, a wisp of sea breeze ruffling her long hair. “And you’re right, I am in love with him. We were fighting it so hard we never realized that the Force was willing it; pushing us towards each other for this purpose. Together we will defeat Hux and crush the First Order. But I need your help. We need your help.”

Everything she’s saying makes sense; even though he and the girls are not strong with the Force, Finn knows Rey is not wrong. He knows this is the fight they have been preparing for, the fight Leia had always primed them for.

But he’s lost Rey. She no longer belongs to the Resistance; she no longer belongs to them.

“Please don’t see it like that Finn.”

“It is like that. You belong with Kylo Ren. You belong with your brother. You’re a Knight of Ren.”

 

“It doesn’t have to be like that – this us versus them – we are all on the same side. We are no longer a spark, we are a roaring fire that _will_ burn down the First Order and bring peace in the galaxy. All of us. And Finn, you are my brother too.”

Rey’s cheeks are covered in crystalline tears and so are Rose and Kaydel’s, mirroring his own turmoil.

She’s right. This is right.

His mouth can’t articulate his feelings but his body knows what to do. He pulls Rey closer into a hug, joined by the girls.

“I love you guys.”

“We love you too Finn, you silly big rathar.” His beautiful Rosie always knew what to say.

***

Wyatt always knew he wouldn’t get to keep her; as soon as he saw the change in Kylo the day they had both saved her on Hoth, he knew his friend and Master was in love with this slip of a girl. He just had to admit it to himself, to obey the will of the Force that was constantly pushing them together.

But when it was revealed to them that she is his sister, the only person outside of the Knights of Ren he’s ever loved, he wasn’t as willing to give her up. This wasn’t the first time he’d fought against the will of the Force, foolishly.

Rey had brought peace to the Master of the Knights of Ren and now that she and Kylo had finally confessed their feelings to each other, they were balanced. And that brought balance to the Knights of Ren.

They were almost ready. They needed to get Auburn back and with the Rebels they would have a more than fair chance at bringing down the First Order and achieving the purpose of the Guardians of the Wills – balance and peace in the galaxy.

He would always be overprotective of her; she was his since the day she was born. They shared blood and an unbreakable bond. But she belonged with Kylo Ren.

As he stands in Leia Organa’s apartment, watching his sister and his friend profess their love for each other, feeling the Force hum with peace and approval, he too feels happy.

Of course, if they could make more of an effort to shield their thoughts about all that goes on between them or maybe just try to keep it in their pants, that would be preferable. As powerful as he is, he’s still human and he cannot be held accountable for his actions if he continues to get glimpses of Kylo at various phases of undress in the company of his sister.

They are ready.

All is as the Force wills it.

***

They left the Rebels, Pete the Trooper and the droids back at the apartment and headed out to Saline in the middle of the night, under the cover of clouds.

Seven dark shapes on swift speeders.

They found the First Order encampment without any trouble; one of the pitfalls of having the ultimate power in the galaxy – or at the very least having the conviction that this is the case – is the over-confidence that accompanies this sense of invincibility. As such, the First Order makes no effort to hide their operations. The transports are parked on the roof of the metal, windowless military camp.

There are no guards, there is no movement, but they can sense the life inside.

There must be maybe fifty living beings in there as far as Rey could discern, but they seem hidden, the Force purposely kept at bay.

A surprise attack is the only way they will be able to overtake the Storm Troopers. On the off-chance that Hux is actually here, they need him to be entirely unprepared.

With enough ease, Kylo, flanked by Attari and Wyatt, blow the doors down. They are followed inside by C’mmaron and Alix. Rey and Sunny remain outside, checking for a secondary entrance which they quickly find hidden behind thick greenery.

As they make their way inside, using what seems to be an evacuation tunnel, they hear footsteps and hushed voices.

Rey reaches out to Kylo and Wyatt with the Force, drawing them in this direction and then crouches in her attack stance, back to back with Sunny, sabers raised but not yet lit.

Between the two of them they have the exit blocked. Whomever is approaching, they will not be making it out.

Rey and Sunny’s eyes are now well-adjusted to the dark cloak of the tunnel and easily make out the shapes of the two Stormtroopers leading the pack of prisoners. They were likely aware of the perimeter breach, but have clearly not yet understood who it is exactly that has invaded their poorly guarded operation.

“Stand down if you want to keep your buckets attached troopers.” Sunny’s low-timbered voice booms and fills the tunnel. Her familiarity with him, with the way he is utterly faithful to the Force and his general peace-loving demeanor doesn’t stop her own visceral reaction to his command, the hair on her arms standing up and silencing the chill creeping up her spine.

_Still got it!_

_Sunny Ren! This is not a great time!_

How is he so calm! She doesn’t get to think about it very long as the foolhardy troopers aim and fire their blasters at them, only to have their shots redirected back to them, blowing them onto their backs.

She can sense fear radiating from the group of prisoners - -not surprising – and it’s getting worse as the sound of big angry boots running towards them gets louder.

The two of them don’t fear however; they can sense it’s the Knights of Ren and Kylo.

Suddenly, out of the small crowd, a familiar voice croaks sharply

“Ben Solo!” and all the knights stop in their tracks, lighting their sabers to see better.

Rey knows that voice and she rushes to her.

“Maz!”

Rey lights her saber to see her better and notices Wyatt taking his place protectively behind her, while Kylo stands on guard, clearly shaken by his first time meeting Maz since he’d destroyed her cantina on the day everything started.

“Child. I see you’ve heeded my words and found your belonging at long last. What of your gift, have you accepted the Force’s will?”

“Oh Maz! Let’s get you out of here, we can talk about it once you’re safe.”  

The tiny woman smirks at her and adjusts her glasses to look at her closer. “We’re safe as Loth kittens, we took care of the troopers.”

“ _We_ took care of the troopers” Sunny states in his gruff voice, looming over Maz, who is of course, not phased in any way at his attempt of intimidation.

“Those aren’t troopers you fools!” an unfamiliar woman’s voice interjects, perhaps unaware of who they are. Or doesn’t care.

This is not acceptable to Wyatt as he raises one side of his ruby saber to the woman’s throat, faintly taken aback by how young and beautiful she is. “And who might you be?”

The small brunette doesn’t back down from the saber held so close to her throat that Rey can distinguish her ice blue eyes piercing Wyatt as she hisses her name “Vella Hesas.”

“Do you know who we are then, Vella Hesas?”

“You’re the Knights of Ren and he is the former Supreme Leader of the First Order, Kylo Ren. Fugitives and outcasts now, just like us.”

Rey flinches at the waves of hate that roll off the woman as she utters his name.

“You’re very brave. Or very stupid Vella.” Rey’s words leave her mouth involuntarily, the words just rolling off her tongue meant to lash the woman disrespecting her brother and Kylo.

“And you’re the Jedi who turned to the Dark Side and joined the Jedi Killer. Guess it takes one to know one.”

Rey’s hackles are now up, her temper flaring. _What fucking nerve!_

“Now, now! Rey, Vella is my granddaughter. She’s high-spirited like her grandma but don’t pay any attention to her, she’s just a little rough around the edges that’s all.” Maz steps in front of Vella and shoves her back, smiling sweetly up at Wyatt who lowers but doesn’t shut off his saber.

“We don’t have time for this, we need to get moving before more troopers get here.” C’mmaron spits from behind the group, the tendrils of concern coming off her wrapping around the rest of the knights.

Maz, still smiling up at Wyatt, waves her hand dismissively in Rey’s direction.

“I told you, there are no other troopers coming. Those two took care of them.” She points to the spot where the two Stormtroopers shot down by Rey and Sunny were lying motionless, Rey feeling riddled with guilt immediately.

A high-pitched squeak comes from behind the knights and something runs over Attari’s feet, much to his chagrin.

“What the hell!”

“Oh Force! It’s _that_ BB unit!” Kylo exclaims but it’s too late because BB8 rolls over to Rey, spewing a long string of obscenities.

“Buddy! What are you talking about? Poe’s where? I don’t understand…”

BB8 rolls to the crumpled troopers and bumps one of their legs. Rey stands up and follows him, cautiously leaning over and removing the helmet.

“Poe!” tears stream down her cheeks as she drops to her knees in desperation, feeling her chest constricting, her body refusing to accept that she had killed Poe Dameron.

“Hush now child, this isn’t the first time Dameron’s been stunned.” Maz reassures her with a pat on her shoulder and Rey’s head whips around to regard her, ensuring she’s heard correctly.

“Their blasters were set to stun; but they did kill all the guards.”

“Who’s the other one?” Rey’s voice is just a whisper, relief flooding her senses.

Maz straightens herself and looks at Kylo, who avoids her gaze. “She’s one of them. Hux’s coveted prize.”

“Auburn.” Sunny puts away his saber and crouches over the girl, removing her helmet and wiping sweat off her face.

They need to get out of here before any more surprises came up, pleasant or otherwise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, please let me know your thoughts and again, thank you so much for your support and love for this story!


	34. Chapter 34

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They're back on Hoth and not everyone is happy about it!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to my wonderful beta Emily for always taking everything I give her and turning it into gold!

Kylo watches the snow fall around the transport with disbelief and chagrin.

_Back to Hoth. Fuck me!_

He never truly expected to be back here. He hoped he wouldn’t ever have to step back onto this hell planet that had almost taken his Rey away from him.

But, given the sudden increase in their numbers, they could no longer afford to stay in Hanna City. Their ranks included the eight Knights of Ren, the two dozen rebels that had broken into his home under the leadership of his uncle and the fifty force sensitives they had just rescued, a group that included Maz Kanata - space pirate and godmother extraordinaire.

Kylo shakes his head with incredulity realizing that he is the de-facto leader of the new rebellion.

He fought becoming his father’s son so much that he never realized when he became just like his mother. A shiver runs through him and makes him shudder uncomfortably.

This place took his mother away from him.

He is not yet ready to talk about it, any of it, but her loss in particular is a sensitive topic.

If he were honest with himself, which he rarely liked to be when it came to the sordid topic of his parents, he never really processed his mother’s death. He never grieved for her and he never truly admitted to himself that she was gone, a part of the Force and forever out of his reach.

Later.

Right now they need to get everyone settled inside the frigid base and come up with a semblance of an attack plan.

Kylo feels uncomfortable; it’s not at the thought of the impending battle, or the delicate truce they had forged with the Rebels; he’s missing something. The Force is trying to warn him, to show him something he’s overlooked but he can’t identify it.

He’s chewing frantically on his bottom lip as he’s staring out of the transport’s window. He can’t bring himself to leave the ship yet. This may be the last time he has a moment to himself in possibly the very short remainder of his life span.

“Oh no you don’t!” Rey’s annoyed voice chimes and he turns to face her. His body is magnetized to hers. His mind doesn’t even have to tell him he should take her in his arms, he just does, and she snuggles in his embrace, resting her head in the space that has become hers and hers alone, above his heart, nestled under his chin.

“You’re never leaving me alone again Kylo Ren. It’s you and me until the end. You go down, I go down. There is just no way around it.”

He nods in agreement and chokes back the tears that have blurred his vision; this is the first time he’s lied to her.

“Should we go in and organize the troops? I think we need at least a week, ideally two, for us to train and strategize.”

“I don’t know if Hux will be that patient Rey. Snoke used to call him a rabid cur behind his back and he lives up to that name. As soon as he gets wind that we have joined with the Rebels, he will hunt us all down.”

Rey’s skin prickles with goosebumps and Kylo decides to change the subject; what’s one more item added to his “deal with it never” pile!

He places his hands on each of her shoulders and gently pushes her away from his body to zip up her black robe and secure the cowl around her head, drinking her in. Somehow, even with the tension of their imminent battle and possible demise pressing on them, a generous amount of his blood rushes straight to his crotch at the sight of Rey dressed as a Knight of Ren.

Kylo can’t help himself from caging her in with both of his hands and sealing his lips to hers, immediately deepening their kiss and pressing her into the window.

“What the fuck guys! I asked you nicely, can you please just not! I feel very strongly about potentially having to gouge my own eyes out, but I will fucking do it!” Wyatt’s exasperated voice interrupts them, yet again.

“Sorry” is all Rey could muster, out of breath and giggling, immediately changing Kylo’s mood from completely abysmal to somewhat light-hearted. As light-hearted as Kylo Ren could get.

“Has Auburn woken up yet?” Wyatt doesn’t acknowledge the half-assed apology, he clearly just wants to ignore them and move on.

“She still has a few more hours left in the bacta tank. Same as the pilot.”

“Oh boy, that should be a fun awakening! Hopefully Dameron doesn’t try to shoot you again” Wyatt chuckles as he adjusts his own hood and cowl and heads out, followed by Kylo and Rey holding hands.

***

_She’s being wheeled into a tunnel, secured to a gurney with Poe walking handcuffed by her side. She can’t feel the Force at all anymore._

_Auburn knew their only chance at an escape was through good old-fashioned combat. Another skill that she had never bothered mastering because she had always taken for granted that Sunny would be by her side to protect her. No Force, no fighting skills. She’s more convinced than ever that she was only allowed to stay in the Knights of Ren because of Sunny’s insistence._

_But getting free of their captors had to be more of a priority than the existential crisis she was quickly beginning to experience._

_She would have to use the only talent she had truly mastered; raw, unaltered manipulation of the male psyche._

_Men were so simple, so easy._

_Those were still men under those rigid white uniforms. If she could get away from whatever inhibitor was pumping through her veins, she could at least hone enough of the Force to blow this place to hell and maybe get through to Sunny._

_A trooper entered the cell after a few hours and she assumed he was there to change her IV when he removed his helmet and revealed himself to her, making her smile widely for the first time in days._

_“I thought you were a little short to be a Stormtrooper! Poe Dameron, I never thought I would be so happy to see that handsome face of yours!”_

_He looks at her as he is releasing her shackles and removes the tubes from her arm. “You think I’m handsome?”_

_“Don’t be an idiot. How did you get out?”_

_“I used a Jedi mind trick. How do you think? I stashed a pin in one of my jacket sleeves and toiled for fucking hours to release those cuffs.”_

_“So they don’t know you’ve escaped?”_

_Just as she was finishing her last sentence, the sounds of a loud alarm started blaring._

_Poe lifts his gaze from her and sighs “I guess they do now. C’mmon. Let’s go find you that laser sword so you can get us out of here!”_

_He grabbed her hand and helped her off the gurney, both jogging out of the room hand-in-hand._

_Auburn found her saber quick enough; the troopers and Kanji’s who had captured them scrambled at the sounds of the siren, forgetting to secure it. Clearly they were trying to understand how to turn it on and Auburn had been briefly disappointed that none of them inadvertently impaled themselves with the second side._

_She called it to her with the Force and it answered quickly, now secured and lit in her hand. One side was sufficient for now._

_The taste of freedom, the feel of having her weapon back combined with the complete and utter confidence in her that was emitting from Poe gave her a refreshed sense of sureness._

_They ran into the first group of troopers whom she easily froze in place using the Force and proceeded to swiftly kill with a few sharp strokes of her saber._

_Poe shot most of the Kanjis with his two blasters that he had lifted off the dead troopers._

_As they stopped for a brief respite, she couldn’t help but stare with appreciation. He wasn’t strong with the Force, he didn’t have any special abilities. He just had his courage and determination and had saved her using sheer will power._

_Without thinking about it, she reached up and crushed her mouth to his, greedily parting his lips with her tongue and kissing him with an urgency like she had never experienced. He was reciprocating, his hands pulling her into his body as his tongue began to massage hers with equal hunger._

_They stopped to breathe and she realized this is, without a doubt, the first time she has ever given into an impulse like that. All her conquests had always been meticulously calculated, but this, him, this was instinct._

_“So, I suppose I do think you’re handsome General Dameron” she smiles and he pulls her in for another deep kiss shortly interrupted by the distinct sound of approaching steps._

_The remaining troopers were easily disposed of. Now that they had joined their efforts, there would be nothing stopping them. Auburn decided that a Stormtrooper’s uniform would be less conspicuous than her flashy leather pants ensemble and the helmet would serve well to hide her recognizable red locks._

_As they made their way out, however, Auburn sensed it. A pulse in the Force that was awakening from numbness around her, calling to her._

_She stilled in front of a large steel door and pulled. Inside, restricted in the same way she had been, were about 50 more people._

_Auburn and Poe worked quickly to free each and every one of them from their restraints. The last one called out to Poe by his name._

_“Maz! What the hell are you doing here?” he said to her, crouching to her eye level and pulling her into a tight hug._

_The small woman regarded him with her big rimmed eyes and wiped away tears. “Oh kiddo, it’s a long story. Those beasts found us and brought us here. You see, while we are not strong with the Force like your girl here, we have some Force abilities which seem to be useful to the First Order.”_

_“Ok, we can talk about it later Maz. I don’t even know where we are and we need to get the hell out of here before more troops arrive._

_As they were advancing through the tunnel, she felt the Force vibrate again, with warning, but it was too late. They heard the heavy boots from behind them and the booming voice that halted them in their tracks and then….nothing._

“Auburn? Can you hear me?”

She knew that voice, she loved that voice.

Her body was slow to respond to her commands, she wanted to move and open her eyes and confirm that she was not just imagining him.

Through the viscous substance, she could slowly make out the features. Sandy blonde hair, scruffy face, massive body – Sunny Ren.

He sensed her awakening and reached down to pull her out of the tank, covering her with a thick blanket and carried her to a bunk. She felt so good being in the arms of her brother and protector again.

“Is Poe alright?” her voice croaked and Sunny’s breath stilled for just a beat, taken by surprise.

“He’s resting. As you should be too. We’ll talk more later about why you didn’t just listen to me and lower your fucking weapons instead of having me blast you to kingdom come!”

His brotherly chiding soothes her and anchors her. She’s back home, back with the Knights of Ren where she belongs.

He sits with her, prolonging his vigil and Auburn feels him working through the light side of the Force to speed her healing.

Just before she falls back to sleep, her mind drifts back to Poe and the time they’ve spent together. Their kiss. The way he made her feel powerful and beautiful had stirred in her feelings she’s never truly experienced.

She was so foolish but all her attempts at resisting him were futile. She could not deny the chemistry they had and she didn’t want to. The Knights of Ren would have to understand.

Besides, Kylo Ren of all people should understand. He’s thrown everything away to be with the Jedi.

Auburn’s thoughts just before she drifts off into a dreamless sleep are a flurry of emotions and conflicting feelings.

She doesn’t notice Sunny’s eyes open widely, watching her intently, nodding his head at the thoughts she’s forgotten to control.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry this has taken so long for me to update! RL is getting really crazy with wedding only 2 months away now! I am aiming to update every 10-14 days. I have finally outlined the rest of the chapters, there is lots more fun and action to come!  
> Thank you so much my dear readers for sticking with me!!!!  
> Come see me on Tumblr @riaria84 :)


	35. Chapter 35

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang settles on Hoth; Kylo faces some difficult conversations.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took a while to post, RL is craziness right now!  
> As always, I want to thank you all so much for reading and leaving your comments.  
> Come say hi on Tumblr; I'm Riaria84 on there :)

 

The interior of the former rebel base is packed, but somehow not chaotic. Everyone, including his knights – spare Auburn, who is just waking up from her bacta treatment – appear to have settled in comfortably.

Or as comfortable as they could be in this frozen hell.

_Fuck, this place is horrible._

Kylo muses as a shiver runs right through him. It could be the cold. But no, _this, this is something else._

He’s standing by the steel brazier in the conference slash living room of the base, watching everyone around him. The rebels have all claimed their shelter while Rey, Finn and the two girls accompanying him went outside to diligently tend to the open-air maintenance errands.

_Ben Solo, I hope you’ve been taking good care of my girl._

Kylo is startled by Maz’s presence inside his mind; it’s been ages since he’s felt his godmother this close to him.

“Maz.” he nods his head at the small feisty woman who holds two glasses of red wine, passing one to him.

“My beautiful boy, I can see so much of your parents in you.”

Kylo winces, feeling that the grip he’s had firm on his carefully lidded feelings is about to get blown out of the water. He doesn’t want to talk about them. Not to Maz and not here.

Just as he always does when he’s uncomfortable, he stiffens his posture and chews on the inside of his own mouth, the brief sting of pain being just enough to help his brain focus.

But then, Chewie walks in.

Although they’ve been in each other’s company for a few days now, they have not actually spoken directly more than a few words, entirely due to Kylo’s superhuman efforts at avoiding the Wookie.

Here he stands, in a room with the last two living members of his family, in the place where his mother had passed peacefully into the Force, and it gets to him.

Kylo doesn’t have time to stop them; he feels the traitorous tears staining his cheeks as Chewie closes the distance between them and envelops him in his arms. Memories of Ben Solo’s childhood come flooding back to him, the built up stress of the past weeks, over the past decade really, finally peaking and blowing up like a volcano.

He’s not sure how long he’s spent in the wookie’s embrace, his emotions and tears pouring out of him unchecked. When he does break the embrace however, he sees Maz with her red rimmed eyes standing with her granddaughter Vella Hesas and Poe Dameron joined by the somber Knights of Ren.

“What’s happening!” They all turn as Rey runs in with her cowl and hood still pulled up, saber lit in hand and a look of fierce determination on her face, slowly turning to confusion. Finn, Keydel and Rey are right behind her, disordered but also ready to battle.

“Who’s hurting you Kylo? I could feel it through the Force. Your turmoil, your pain. It almost dropped me.”

Kylo’s heart leapt at the sight of his fierce warrior rushing to his side ready to defend him. “No one’s hurting me sweetheart, it’s just _this place.”_

Chewie lets out a whine and Maz nods, pouring wine for all of them. It seems they are the only ones left still awake, all other occupants of the base seemingly unaware of their impromptu gathering.

Maz is regarding him with the same warmth she’s always had for him, generously offering him her affection and grabbing onto his hand with both of her tiny wrinkled ones “I don’t think I’ll ever be ready to talk about them Maz. I know what I did. I know I lost them long before the Force took them.”

“No kiddo. No one is ever really gone. Your father knew what he was doing, he always felt guilty that he hadn’t done right by you as a child, that if he would’ve been a better husband to your mother he would’ve been a better father to you. He knew he never fought enough for you. He went to save you Ben. I know that he gave his life knowing his sacrifice would be your turning point.”

Maz’ words are so powerful and he hopes so much that she’s right. Chewie’s silent nods of agreement add weight to her words.

Rey is by his side now, squeezing his other hand lovingly.

His light in the darkness as she’d always been.

He clears his throat and addresses the room, silently thanking them for their support.

“Tomorrow morning we need to start training. Sunny, Wyatt, Rey and myself will take the Force Sensitives and provide them with as much knowledge about their gift as possible. Not all are equally powerful, but all are strong with the Force; our most powerful ally in this fight.”

Rey nods in approval as she’s more than aware what effect a little discipline and training would do to someone who suddenly finds themselves Force sensitive.

_You’re a good teacher._

Kylo squeezes her hand and quickly glimpses at her as he continues “Auburn, General Dameron, Finn, C’marron, Alix and Attari will train everyone on their hand to hand combat. I have a feeling this is going to get messy once we’re in the fray and I want everyone to be completely ready.”

He’s waiting for snark from the one knight with limitless amounts of it, but she’s silent and stoic and most surprisingly of all, she’s agreeing with him.

_Kylo I need all the training I can get._

She’s probably right. He’d never been harsh with her, allowing her to become more and more dependent on Sunny’s abilities. If only he would’ve been a better master, she might’ve not gotten into the precarious position they found her on Chandrilla. Really, if he hadn’t separated her from Sunny and the rest of the knights, she would’ve been safer.

“Don’t do that Kylo.” She speaks out loud, sudden reminder that Kylo hasn’t heard her voice in weeks.

“Don’t say think that. I’m glad you sent me away. Having to rely on my own abilities has been really eye opening. I haven’t been pulling my own weight and I’ve been taking you guys and the Force for granted. I will not be guilty of that again.”

He smiles at her and notes the air of content surrounding all his knights, their entire group finally experiencing harmony after years of struggles.

“Alright, we need to get some rest. Some of us haven’t slept in over a day and we need to be clear headed to train tomorrow.”

The crowd dissipates slowly, everyone feeling the fatigue of their circumstances down to their bones.

Rey is standing behind him as they watch the last remnants of the fire simmer down. He can feel Rey’s exhaustion as she rests her forehead just below his shoulder blades, reaching her arms around his abdomen.

“You should go sleep sweetheart. Tomorrow is going to be a long day.”

“Don’t be too long” she says as she places a gentle kiss on his back and pats his bottom.

“Don’t start anything you can’t finish _Jedi_.”

“Oh, we’re definitely not done here _Master.”_

He feels the flush of pleasure jolt through both of them and turns around to kiss her hungrily.

“I’ll be there in a few moments.”

She parts from him and he watches her saunter towards her old room until their fingers are no longer touching. Watching her walk away from him, swaying her curvy bottom, is one of his few pleasures in life.

_I always liked her you know._

_Finally._

He’s felt her presence since they’ve arrived back on Hoth. He could sense her, somewhere between past and present, between the physical and ethereal.

“Mother.”  


The glowing blue light around her softened her features. She looked younger than the last time he’s seen her in Han Solo’s mind as he was driving his saber through his heart, breaking both of them at the same time and changing three lives forever.

“You know, everything Maz said was true. Everything that happened led us to this moment, to this fight. You are the end of our lineage, the true chosen one, who will bring back the balance to the Force. Everything that happened was intended.”

“That’s convenient. You don’t even have to justify your choices as a means to an end. You get to sit back and say it’s all pre-ordained, as if that makes it all ok.”

“It _is_ all pre-ordained. Starting with my father and ending with you.”

He feels his rage bubble over, his jaw tense and his teeth clenching, trying desperately to maintain a semblance of control over his emotions. “If you truly believed that, why did you banish me to his temple? If you already knew I was doomed, why didn’t you let me stay in my home, with my family?” When I needed you the most, you sent me away.”

“Luke was your family too. But that was my biggest mistake son. I thought I could hide you from Snoke. I knew he had his claws in you since I was carrying you in my belly, I thought Luke would be the best person to protect you.”

“You were wrong.”

“I was.” Her eyes brim with tears as she steps closer to him, reaching out to him. Ben can feel her desperation at wanting to touch him, her emotions rolling as they had been the last time he’d sensed her, when he attacked their transport.

“I truly am sorry Ben.”

“It’s too late to apologize. It’s too late.”

His troubled mind immediately goes to Rey. He’s carefully blocked all the Force wielders from his thoughts when he sensed Leia close. He didn’t want to be having this conversation and he certainly didn’t’ want any witnesses to the meltdown he was anticipating.

But the thinks of Rey. What would she do if she was given the chance to confront the family who abandoned her?

“I forgave Han Solo that day. I’m not ready to forgive you yet.” He regarded her as he stopped his incessant pacing, unclenching his jaw and relaxing his hands at his sides. “But I do appreciate your advice, as a general and military strategist.”

She nods her head at that, taking it as small victory.

_She would._

“You’ve united the rebels into one faction. I know the nomenclature isn’t easy for you to stomach, but that’s what you and your knights are now. A unified front is important against a powerful enemy.”

She’s rubbing her chin pensively, as she did when she was still alive, deep in thought.

“Are you training the Force sensitives as well? Having so many of them is an immeasurable advantage. Look what we were able to accomplish with Luke alone. And then with Rey’s help. With your power and training, you will be unstoppable if you are clever.”

He nods affirmatively, feeling some of the tension leave his body “Do you know where Hux is or what he’s planning?”

She chuckles with mirth, the smile reaching her eyes. “You know that’s not how the Force works Ben.”

He smirks, letting his guard drop just a bit more, and shrugs “Worth a shot”.

Ben sees her blue light fading, its outline beginning to blend with the cold air around them and he feels a pang of grief at her departure.

He knows he shouldn’t feel this way, but here he stands, nonetheless, heart wrenched at the little time he was afforded with her.

“One last thing before I go son. Don’t make the same mistake Hux is making. Don’t let your power cloud your judgement and make you arrogant. Listen to Force, trust the warning.”

“So it’s true then?”

As her presence dwindles back into the cosmos, he can hear her voice lingering, like the final notes of a wind chime in a lazy summer breeze, just at the edges of his consciousness and another cold shiver courses through his entire body, chilling him to the bone.

“There _is_ a traitor in your midst.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So! I originally hadn't planned to bring Leia about as a Force ghost or otherwise, but it seems that she will be present in Episode 9 in some capacity so I wanted to have her play an important role in this story as well.  
> Let me know your thoughts!!!


	36. Chapter 36

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The calm before the storm

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First off, thank you to kylotrashforever for beta-ing this mess of a chapter! Emily I hope your move went well :)  
> Second of all, if you're still here, I'm sorry I've kept you waiting this long! I'm back to regular updates now and there are still a few chapters to go until we're all wrapped up!   
> There's smut in the first part of this update! There's no significant reason why it should be there, other than it's been forever since I updated and I thought it would be a bit of a treat!  
> If you want to skip it, read after the page break!

 

If there was a word to describe exhaustion to the point of delirium, that’s exactly how Rey was feeling when Kylo sent her to her room.

She woke up sometime later to her empty bed, but he was not far.

She could feel the turmoil of emotions flurrying around him, much like the snow that was steadily coming down outside the base. The moonlight shining through the window framed his features beautifully, a celestial spotlight just for him. Even without the ability to feel the storm raging inside him, the painful grimace on his face told her everything she needed to know.

“Kylo? Was that...”

“I don’t want to talk about her right now sweetheart.” A quiet, strangled reply was all he could muster as he turned to face her and wiped the fat tears rolling down his face.

“Come here.” she whispered and opened her arms in invitation to him.

He sat down gingerly on the edge of the bed, his eyes still following the rapid fall of the snowflakes, entirely hypnotized by the chaos.

He’s keeping something from me.  

Rey sat up to embrace him in a comforting hug but it became clear that wasn’t what he needed as he pulled her into his lap and kissed her like a starved man.

He was demanding, bruising her with his lips as his tongue parted her lips with urgency. Kylo’s hands were squeezing her to his chest as he devoured her, taking her breath away. He was needy and possessive and it was making Rey’s head spin.

“Rey, I need you right now.” he whispered as he snaked his hands under her bottom and stood up, flipping her on her back and ripping off her sleeping pants in one smooth motion to cage her in with his arms.

Rey whimpered when she felt him hard already, rubbing against the sensitive skin at the apex of her thighs as he resumed kissing her. The friction of his coarse pants on her bare skin was delicious, bringing Rey dangerously close to the edge.

“My insatiable girl. It’s been less than two days.”

She opened her eyes, panting and regarding him with curiosity “Has it only been that little? It feels like months!”

Kylo chuckled, but his eyes were dark and intense, filled with the same hunger that seemed to always be gnawing at her core. He removed her shirt with a slight flick of his fingers, leaving her completely bare under him.

She loved watching him taking in her nudity; every time it was as extraordinary as the first time, his burning gaze drinking her in as a soft gasp left his slightly parted lips. It made her feel beautiful, wanted and most of all, loved.

He toed off his boots quickly and shucked his robe and pants with impressive speed, leaving him as naked as she was.

Kylo then nestled himself between her legs, parting her knees with his. He lowered his mouth to her chest, taking one of her pebbled nipples between his lips and sucking it roughly to elicit a loud moan from her.

“Sweetheart,” he chided as he released her breast from his mouth, still lavishing her hardened peak with attention and rolling it between his calloused fingers. “You have to be quiet, and you really have to lock down your thoughts before we give all these people a good show.”

She rolled her eyes at him with impertinence; Rey knew he was right but she was so keyed up by him, she was hardly interested in a lecture about Force control.

She didn’t even have a moment to process what was happening when Kylo snaked his hands under her back and flipped her over, straddling the backs of her legs with high muscular thighs, looming over her mouthwateringly heavy and hard.

“I know you’re not going to be a good girl for me, but you can bite down on this pillow while I fuck you into this mattress.” His filthy words, uttered in that guttural timbre that sent vibrations through her every cell, reached her core and caused her entire body to shudder.

As Kylo licked slow wet kisses on the back of her neck, trailing towards her shoulder blades and lower back, she could feel his hard cock, swollen and leaking beads of precum on her bottom. She felt her own slick covering her folds, her arousal pooling all over the front of her thighs and dripping on the bed while her cunt clenched around nothing, aching for him to fill her up.

She whimpered for him again, not satisfied with the painfully slow pace he’d set. He chuckled gruffly in her ear, as he took his cock in hand and covered his length in her silky arousal. “Hmm seems like you’re ready for me little Jedi.”

“Please.” she whined without any shame. She needed this. She needed him inside her urgently or she was going to combust.

“Please what?”

Bastard.

“Please. Master.”

She didn’t finish saying the words when he slammed into her, sheathing himself entirely in her soaking pussy. A throaty moan escaped her as he filled her up, the line between pleasure and pain blurred by the stretch.

He placed one of his hands between her shoulder blades and gently pushed her down until her face hit the pillow and she bit down to stop herself from screaming his name.

“Such a good girl for me, so wet and tight, taking all of me so good. I need you to cum for me sweetheart.” Kylo whispered in her ear as he moved his hips, thrusting into her hard and fast. He was still straddling her and the added friction of her thighs clenching together, combined with the way he was hitting that spot inside her repeatedly took her over the edge.

Rey careened towards her climax, her moans muffled into the pillow as her cunt pulsed around him, soaking him and making him bite down on her shoulder as he tried to stifle his own groans.

He lifted her hips off the mattress and knelt behind her, giving himself a different angle. The added leverage on her hips allowed him to pick up the pace even more, pounding into her viciously chasing his own release.

Rey could feel the sweat dripping off his massive chest and onto her back, as he panted and dug his fingers into her hips. He moved his thumbs down her thighs, reaching for her clit where his nimble fingers rubbed her feverishly.

“I want you to cum with me Rey.” The words came out strangled as he lifted her so that she was flush to his chest, impaled on his cock and entirely at his mercy as he continued to rub her sensitive nub.

His other hand squeezed her pert nipples as it made its way to her mouth. He meant to cup her so she keept quiet, but Rey parted her lips and took two of his fingers deep in her mouth, sucking them as she listened to Kylo’s harsh breathing intensify.

His entire body tensed as he brought her to orgasm again, while his hot cum filled her as the rhythm of his hips slowed and he trailed soft kisses down the column of her throat.

He lowered her back to her pillow, pulling out of her and gently stroking her hair as he wrapped her in his arms and pulled the covers over both of them.

“Rey, I love you so much. I promise I will never let anyone or anything hurt you. Do you trust me?”

“Of course I do Kylo, now let’s get some sleep, tomorrow is going to be a really long day.”

The kiss he placed in her hair was his only response, his enormous arms rocking her to sleep, making her feel safe.

And still she knew; there was something he was keeping from her, but she was much too tired to get into this discussion with him at this point.

She drifted off to sleep shortly, not noticing that in the moonlight trickling through the window, Kylo was still wide awake, quietly chewing on the inside of his lip, watching the snow fall.  

****

“Rey, we never had a chance to talk. Umm… Finn told me how you felt when we left you. I just want you to know, if I had any idea that he knew where you were already, I would’ve never…”

Poe finds her as she’s just getting into the first cup of kaf of the day. She could feel the guilt radiating off him since he woke up from his stun sleep.

“Poe, don’t. All is as the Force wills it. He and I belong together in every possible way, you leaving me here brought us to this moment, to this fight. And besides…if you hadn’t left for Naboo, you wouldn’t have met Auburn Ren.”

He’s suddenly carefully inspecting the floor, contemplating her words and looks up at her with that rugged Dameron smile “That’s true.”

“You care about her.”

Is Poe Dameron blushing?

“I do. I don’t know what it is, I shouldn’t, we’re enemies…or at least we were but I can’t seem to stay away from her. Not that I ever tried, mind you.”

Rey chuckles wholeheartedly, fully aware that Poe always gets what Poe wants. “Does she know how you feel about her?”

“I doubt that. I barely understand myself.” He sighed deeply and then changes the subject, to Rey’s chagrin. “Speaking of feelings. You have a brother?! And a Kylo. Who are both Ren. Are you a Ren now too?”

“Umm no. I’m still just Rey.”

“Does he…does he know about …umm you, know before I left?”

Now it’s her turn to blush as the memory of his lips on hers while attempting to comfort each other floods her memories.

“You and the Jedi!?” a high pitched voice pierced their hushed chatter, both Rey and Poe turning around to see a variety of emotions playing on the faces of Auburn, Wyatt and Kylo.

“You kissed my sister!?”

“Rey is mine.”

Rey rolled her eyes at the group, although more so at Kylo than the others. After everything they’d gone through, he should know better than to act so jealous. “Okay then! All the crazy people, please can we step aside and discuss this like adults?”

“You’re making all of us really uncomfortable just so you know. Especially you there, big brother, I’m not even trained with the Force and I can clearly see you thinking about throttling Poe with your bare hands. You do understand she’s one of the two most powerful Force wielders in the galaxy right? And a full grown woman.” Vella Hesas stood in the doorway dressed in cold weather gear, ready for her combat training, her annoyance permeating into the Force. 

“And who are you, exactly?” Wyatt’s irritation plainly shifted towards her as he took a few strides near her, closing the distance between them and towering over her, in an obvious attempt at intimidating her.

Rey was ready to step in and run interference, but Vella stood her ground, looking up at him with determination, almost as if she was challenging him to go through with his implied threats.

“I’m sorry, Vella.” Wyatt’s shoulders slumped in defeat.

Rey was instantly in awe of this woman, she had never seen anyone have that kind of effect on her brother. Kylo controlled the Knights as their Master, but Vella wielded no such power.

_Interesting. Very interesting._ Rey thought to herself as she focused her attention back to Poe, who was oozing with discomfort under the joint glare coming from Auburn and Kylo.

“Are we good here? Can we start our training now? We only have a few hours before it’s dark.” 

They had decided that the hand to hand combat would be done outside, in order to avoid the destruction of the entire interior of the base. Rey and Kylo had utterly torn the conference room apart with their first and only attempt at sparring and this group of trained and untrained Force wielders would surely blow up the entire base.

Kylo was still glaring at Poe but relented when Rey grinned up at him and tugs lightly on his robes. “C’mon Master, the troops are waiting for us.”

“We will absolutely talk about this again, Jedi.” he whispers through grinding teeth, but she can feel him relaxing.

Rey could also sense Auburn’s eyes on her; the knight was trying to hide her emotions but she could feel the redhead jumping from shock, to uncertainty, to envy; more than anything however, Auburn felt overwhelmed.

_Do you think she’s in love with Poe?_

Rey projected her thoughts carefully to Kylo, who was holding her hand as they walked towards the frosty hangar.

_I don’t know if that’s love, but she’s certainly infatuated with him. To the extent where she seemed like she was ready to fight you. For kissing him. You. Kissing Poe Dameron. I’m totally ok with this._

Rey barks out a loud chuckle.

“Kylo Ren. You need to focus. Your green tinged jealousy is clouding the Force.”

“That’s ridiculous, you can’t see colours of emotions!”

“You’re what’s ridiculous.” She smiled up at him as they reached Sunny and the group waiting for them.

Sunny greets them with enthusiasm. “Good morning Rey. Master”

“You don’t have to call me Master anymore Sunny, we’ve talked about this.”

_I’m the only one who gets to call you Master now._ Rey thought at him, precipitating Kylo to grin widely, to the dismay of all who have gathered for training.

“That’s going to take some getting used to. So, I thought it would be wise to test everyone’s Force abilities before we get into any of the combat training, and in no way should we dabble with the Force inside the base.”

“Good thinking Sunny! Just be careful so you don’t trigger an avalanche. I’m pretty sure that our constant fighting led to the disturbance that almost buried me.” Rey shivered as she remembered the events that ultimately transformed her and Kylo’s relationship.

“Noted.” Sunny cocked an eyebrow with curiosity but turned to address the bigger group, who were getting restless in the frigid temperatures. He cleared his throat and began teaching, seemingly more comfortable with this role than either Rey or Kylo had ever been.

“What do you guys know about the Force?”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys for sticking with me through this story! As some of you know, I just got married October 13 and that's the main reason why I've been so delinquent.   
> I've missed these babies!   
> We got married in Canmore, Alberta (Canada) and the snow is back! Since I have to suffer the white stuff, so do these sweet babies! 
> 
> I've included a couple of photos, it was an awesome day :) come say hi on Tumblr if you like, I'm riaria84
> 
> xoxo


	37. Chapter 37

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Life on Hoth sucks, but it's never predictable!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you my lovely readers for staying with the story and your lovely comments continue to encourage me to write this story!

 

“Those Knights of Ren are all incredible fighters!” Rose gasped as she and Finn took a few moments break from their training to observe the saver demonstration put on by the Knights.

 Finn hadspent the better part of the afternoon training for combat with Attari and the ladies Ren – who he quickly found out, to the detriment of his limbs, do not enjoy being reduced to their gender.

After Sunny confirmed that he, in fact, has no Force gifts whatsoever, he joined the unlikeliest group of fighters he could image: three Knights, Chewie, Pete the Trooper, Rose, Poe and Connix. They spent hours engaged in some good old fashioned sparring in the frozen desolation of Hoth.

As far back as he could remember, Finn had always trained to fight. With blasters, with his hands but only after he escaped from the First Order did he learn how to fight with his heart.

After the Force sensitives joined them, they had all trained together led by Attari and Wyatt Ren, who were Kylo Ren’s vanguard and by far the most skilled warriors Finn had ever seen. Either of them could easily take out a full squadron of troopers without much effort.

It occurred to him just how foolish their _rescue_ mission to Hanna City had truly been.

The sun begun its descent into the darkness, the crimson glow amplified by the sharp sparkle of the snow and ice surrounding them, setting the stage perfectly for the main event.

Rey and Kylo, garbed in their blacks, armed with light sabers, danced around each other in the snow, kicking up flurries and hazing the air with the steam tumbling from their overheated mouths.

Finn had been unconscious when Rey defeated Kylo in the Starkiller woods, but seeing them circle each other like predators, without holding back, barring their teeth and growling viciously was a sight to behold. He could only imagine how fierce their battle in the Starkiller blizzard must have really been.

The entire group of on-lookers seemed to feel the intensity of the match down to their bones and Finn knew that was the Force, humming and roaring through the assemblage of rebels.

They were unequivocally powerful.

While Kylo was more skilled in battle technique and far outweighed Rey, she was quicker and more gifted with the Force, able to anticipate all his moves before he made them.

“Don’t hold back Jedi.” Kylo taunted her as he spun his red saber, squatting into a defensive crouch, waiting for her to strike.

Rey widened her stance and split her double sided saber into two weapons, that she twirled so effortlessly in each hand. Finn knew from his own brief experience how heavy those really were, and he was beyond impressed with his friend’s skills.

Her attack advanced on Kylo, who skillfully fought off all her attempts and gained ground as he got closer, rising to his full height and glowering over her.

“He’s got her!” Rose whispered to Connix and Poe.

It seemed that Rey’s thoughts were on the same lines as she lowered her weapons in ceasefire.

“Truce” Rey spoke between heaved breaths, her chest rising and falling rapidly.

“Say the words Jedi.” Finn could hear Kylo’s voice rumble in his chest, the same voice that had haunted his dreams for years.

Rey huffed a quiet “You win” and dropped her sabers in the snow. Kylo arrogantly extinguished his saber and hooked it back to the belt outside his robe, a satisfied grin decorating his face.

For one second.

Then suddenly, Kylo Ren, in all his glory was lifted in the air and tossed into a heap of fresh powder, relieved of his saber that was lit and hovering dangerously mere inches from his throat.

Rey bellowed a hearty laugh as she stood straddling his ribs with her free hand held out, seemingly holding him down with the Force.

“And herein lies an important lesson: never, ever, let your guard down around your enemy.” Sunny Ren addressed the group, a smirk of amusement quirking his lips ever so slightly.

_If this is what they’re like when they’re just practicing, I like our odds more and more every day._

Finn ruminated as he stretched his limbs.

“Let’s head on inside for some supper and rest, we’ll train more tomorrow.” Wyatt Ren’s voice roared over the small crowd and right on cue, his stomach grumbled with enthusiastic agreement.

***

The scream woke Finn.

He was dazed, the moonlight shining through the small window of the bedroom he and Rose had shared for a year a half shone on her peaceful face and it was the only source of light in the room.

Had he screamed from a nightmare? Finn couldn’t even remember going to sleep; he joined Pete the Trooper, Lando, Chewie, Sunny and Wyatt Ren for a drink after they finished eating.

He had a few glasses of Wyatt’s wine when Kylo Ren had emerged with two bottles of Corelian Whiskey, encouraging them to take shots.

Finn remembered thinking it was more likely to see snow on Jakku than it would’ve been to predict that a year and a half after he’d escaped the First Order he would be spending a night doing shots with Kylo Ren, some of the Knight of Ren and Lando Calrsissian on Hoth.

_Or did I dream that?_

“Finn!” there was the scream again, accompanying a loud pounding on the metal door.

He jumped out of bed and opened the door, finding Rey on the other side of it, her eyes bulging with tears as she flung herself at him, burrowing in his chest.

“What the fuck is going on Rey?” Finn asked, his voice hoarse from sleep and heavy with concern. He’s only seen Rey this emotional once, on Starkiller.

“He’s gone! Finn, he’s gone!”

“Who’s gone, what’s happening Rey?” Rose’s voice rang in through the thickness of night.

“Kylo! Kylo is gone! I can’t find him and I…I can’t feel him through the Force” Rey sobbed.

“I can’t feel him either.” Wyatt Ren’s concerned voice was mirrored by the sullen expression on Sunny and Attari’s faces.

Rey lowered herself to the floor, clutching her head in her palms in what seemed to be complete and utter devastation.

“He left us.” A shrill voice hissed coolly as the rest of the occupants of the base gathered around them.

“He didn’t!” Rey spit out and stood as if she’d been zapped by an electric current, ready to defend her lover.

_Ew. Still too soon for this Ex-Trooper._

“He bloody well has!” Vella Hesas stepped out, standing face to face with Rey.

Finn thought this girl was either incredibly brave or incredibly stupid to taunt Rey like that, especially after the demonstration they were witnesses to earlier.

“I don’t want to burst the bubble on this cozy nest of former Resistance scum and First Order cronies suddenly acting like the best of friends, but we are under attack.” Finn took stock of all the shocked faces around him, feeling a sense of panic rise within himself.

“Kylo fucking Ren and his scummy uncle Lando took off with that fucking trooper you lot seemed to think it so wise to tote around and share all your plans with. They betrayed us and now we have to face the war machine of the First Order on our own.”

Rey and her brother stared at the raven haired woman incredulously, eyes wide with rage.

“Liar.” Rey whispered a barely audible, small noise, so different that the fierce beast she had been acting as just seconds earlier.

“She’s right. They found us!” Connix ran over with the radar readings in hand, Sunny and Poe close behind her.

“It’s the Finalizer. They will have the trooper transports breaking atmo shortly. Then the AT-ATs. We are officially out of time.” Attari Ren’s somber voice shifted their attention from the tension between the two women.

“Everyone gear up as best you can and prepare for battle” Attari’s order boomed loud and clear, setting everyone in motion.

Rose had been holding his hand this entire time, but now she was shaking it, nudging him to pay attention. As he looked down at her, she motioned with her gaze towards Poe.

Who was holding hands with the smallest of the Knights.

_What in the hell is going on around here, do these Knights have some galactic strength pheromones or something?_

Wyatt barked out a small laugh.

“Finn, if that were true, I would certainly not be single”.

“Wyatt, can you please focus. Under normal circumstances I would be all about the two of you bonding over your fierce maleness but we are minutes away from getting blown to smithereens. And my person is gone. The most powerful Force wielder in the galaxy has vanished from the Force.”

A last tear rolled down her cheek as she breathed deeply and closed her eyes, almost in a trance.

As soon as they were open, she was a completely different person.

The fighter and survivor was back, feline eyes focused and ready.

“If Hux wants a war, we will give him a war. Let them come!”

***

Kylo woke with a pulsing headache.

_Where the fuck am I?_

His memories were so blurry; he was tired from training all day. The Force training was so much more exhausting than the hand to hand combat. Although he savored every moment of his sparring with Rey, watching how magnificent she was with her weapons and felt his heart swell with pride when she had bested him.

He remembers having dinner. Rey had made that mushroom stew he loved so much, Leia Organa’s only successful culinary experiment and she’d baked fresh bread for everyone. After he tucked her in their bed for sleep, he’d wandered back into the kitchen to find some of his Knights, Lando and the traitors having wine together.

_Probably should make more of an effort to not call Finn and Pete traitors; after all, me and the Knights are in the same leagues now. Enemies of the Order._

He wondered if he could attribute his throbbing headache to a hangover.

In fact, he was hurting all over, his body has not been in this bad of a shape since Rey had left him torn apart in the forest while Starkiller was blowing up all around him.

Hux found him and brought him back to Snoke. There were many nights when he wished he would’ve just let him die there.

_At least this would’ve been some common ground with Han Solo._

He smirked at his own morbid joke, but feeling little in the way of actual amusement.

“Enjoying yourself Ren?”

The serpent’s voice grated his ears and caused all the small hairs on the back of his neck stand up and he just noticed how inconvenient it was to be handcuffed right now.

“Hux. Where did you bring me?”

The ginger tsk’ed him. “Now now Ren, let’s not spoil all the fun. But I will tell you one thing. You should do a much better job of keeping your friends close and your enemies closer.”

Hux laughed in a sinister manner, as was his way.

_Good to see some things never change._

A door swished open behind Hux and Kylo’s hint of a smile was wiped completely off his face as rage filled him to the brim.

Kylo tugged at his restraints as he tried to use the Force to free himself, grinding his teeth and spitting out the words “My mother was right not to trust you!”

“I always said she was too smart for Han Solo.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lovelies, sorry it's taken a while to update, we're getting close to the end and as the shit is hitting the fan in the next couple of chapters, I wanted to make sure everything is set up in a way that makes sense! I'm aiming for 3-4 more chapters, which should bring us right around Christmas. So crazy that I started this more than 6 months past!! This is my first baby and I hope I do it justice!  
> Happy American Thanksgiving for those of you in the US :)


	38. Chapter 38

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hux gloats as Kylo remains his prisoner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiiii!!!! I am exceptionally sorry about not updating sooner. I had a bit of a writers’ block and got sidetracked by other AUs. But I’m back! And I thank you for your patience❤️
> 
> Please note: there is mention/ alluding to rape. It never actually happens, it’d just discussed. But please be aware of it. Hux is s bad man.
> 
> This chapter sets up the next few until we reach the conclusion.

 

Kylo pulled a cleansing breath deep into his chest as he inventoried his vastly deteriorated circumstances.

 

He was on the Finalizer. A prisoner of Armitage fucking Hux. Betrayed and delivered by one or the few living family members remaining.

 

He was all alone and at the mercy of this psychopath, cut off from the Force and separated from his Knights. Cut off from Rey.

 

“Ah Ren, you’ve always acted like a hot headed child, I knew it wouldn’t take long for you to destroy everything you’ve built on a total whim.” The ginger irritant spoke in that characteristic nasal tone that had annoyed him for years.

 

“I have to say though, I am surprised that you let your dick make your decisions for you. I expected a little bit more from the mighty Kylo Ren.”  Hux continued, visibly relishing in his achievement as he removed invisible lint from his spotless black uniform.

 

Always preening Hugs. The thought made Kylo smirk, if only for a fraction of a second.

 

“The instant you left for that scavenger whore I knew I won.” He gloated as he was always want to do.

 

“Your delusions of grandeur are going to be your undoing Hux.” Kylo spat through gritted teeth.

 

Hux laughed sardonically “So confident aren’t you? You think that scavenger whore and a handful of Force fanatics joining up with Princess Leia’s band of zealots is any match for my army? You really are a foolish child.”

 

“Fuck you Hux.” Kylo was enraged but still tried to keep his instincts under control.

 

“Oh you want to Force choke me don’t you? It is a damn shame you can’t do that anymore. It turns out that without the enhanced abilities, the Kylo Ren is nothing more than the simpering, weak Ben Solo.”

 

“What did you do to me?” He asked, for the sport of it. He already knew.

 

“Uncle Lando, care to enlighten our little Solo here?” Hux turned and beckoned Lando to speak.

 

“He’s not my uncle.”

 

“No? You trusted him and he betrayed you. That sounds like…well that does sound like every member of your family indeed.” Hux chuckled darkly.

 

“It was in the rum.” Lando spoke softly, refusing to look him in the eye.

 

“What was?”

 

“I slipped you an inhibitor. Hux gave it to me when we were on Cloud City.”

 

“Of course. You made a deal. Me for Cloud City.”

 

“Not just the City Ben. Everything I did, I did for love.”

 

“Spare me Lando, the only thing you’ve ever loved has been yourself. “

 

“You’re wrong.”

 

The doors wooshed open again and Hux clapped his hands together loudly. “Right on time your highness.”

 

“Myrexija?”

 

“I do believe you’re acquainted with my wife, Kylo Ren.” Lando spoke as he reached out to take her hand.

 

“You’ve come a long way Uncle. From small-time smuggler to the prince-consort of Naboo. I would offer my congratulations but sadly, my hands are tied.”

 

“Spare me your bullshit Kylo Ren! You’re the cunt who killed Han Solo. My betrayal can’t hold a candle to what you’ve done to your own family.”

 

That stung. The truth of those words was undeniable.

 

“Why?” Kylo turned his gaze to Myrexjia, his childhood friend and ally - at least up until the last few moments. Even in these surroundings she hadn’t given up her royal garb, donning a floor length dress and dripping with an unnecessarily large amount of diamonds and other precious stones.

 

Not in the Naboo nature to be anything less than over-the-top.

 

“Because, Kylo. I was tired of the entire galaxy using Naboo as their own personal drug trafficking hub without getting a piece of the action. You never deemed us fit to consider us as a valuable partner, all you and Snoke and Palpatine before that was to use us. Well no more. Hux here made me an offer I could not refuse. Getting married to the love of my life and joining the powers of Naboo and Bespin in the process has been a gift. Seeing you and those filthy rebels destroyed in the end is just the cherry on top.”

 

She held onto Lando’s hand as she leaned on the console, looking down on the white expanse of Hoth before them.

 

“Well. As wonderful of a family reunion as this has been, there’s not much point in delaying the inevitable is there?” Hux interjected, vitriol spilling from his corroded mouth. “As soon as the base is leveled by my army, I will personally head down there and execute each and everyone of the traitors you’ve amassed in your pathetic little rabble.”

 

The new Supreme Leader was pacing furiously, getting drunk on his own rhetoric.

 

“Every single traitor that bears the name Ren will be destroyed. But not before they too are cut off from their precious Force.”

 

“And how the fuck do you plan on doing that? You’re a fool if you think any of them will let you get close enough without obliterating you.”

 

Hux chortled “I don’t need to get close to them. While you and your cronies were busy fucking your way through the entire Resistance, after you’ve wasted our resources chasing them down all over the galaxy, I was working. The effects of the inhibitor you’re experienced aren’t permanent; they will wear off in a few hours unless you’re administered anther dose. But that will not be necessary - you won’t be for this life much longer than that. Tell me Ren, was she worth it?”

 

He was smug. His arrogance irked Kylo and although his emotions were under control, he wasn’t certain how long he’d be able to maintain his calm demeanour.

 

“With a little assistance from the Kanji’s, we’ve perfected the inhibitor to be used on a mass scale from a distance. This will be the end of the Force users. The end of lunacy and disorder. I will crush the Resistance once and for all and instill order in the galaxy. Just as Snoke had intended. He was greedy through; he wanted to tame you and your band of fantastics so he could have it all. I’m a practical man however. I’m going to destroy each and every single force user in the galaxy and root them out for good.”

 

He was practically foaming at the mouth as he shouted, the tendons in his neck bulging from the effort.

 

“Why all this then?” Kylo asked with an even tone of voice. He had no intention of giving Hux what he wanted - for him to plead and beg, grovelling at his feet. “You could’ve done this as soon as you had your weapon, why the song and dance.”

 

“Because, pet. This is going to be broadcast all over the Holonet. The entire galaxy will bear witness to your obliteration and the cementing of my unquestionable power over everything and everyone. Once they’re all dead, I will personally execute you in front of your whore. Then I shall have my prize.”

 

No. No one talks about Rey like that and lives to tell about it. That was the end of Kylo’s patience as he ripped through his restraints and stood, more than ready to wrap his hands around that tiny pale neck.

 

“Don’t you fucking touch her!”

 

“Ah ah ah!” Hux tisked as he pointed his blaster at him. “Don’t think for a second that I will hesitate to blow a hole in that pretty face of yours. And no I wouldn’t dream of touching Rey.” He said her name as if he taste of it offended him.

 

“I assume she’s been ridden hard and put away yet by you and the other beasts. I’m going to ship her back to Jakku and sell her back to that low life Plutt. After I’ve given some of the men a go at her, of course. I have a different prize in mind.”

 

“Auburn.”

 

“Indeed. I know she’s weak with the Force and once you’re all gone, she will have no choice but to join me. And well...if she doesn’t...there’s always ways to make her comply.”

 

He licked his lips in a gruesome manner as he finished speaking.

 

“Maybe I’ll keep you alive enough to watch me break her. Wouldn’t that be a...”

 

He didn’t get to finish his vile words as the top of Kylo’s forehead met with the bridge of Hux’s nose. Blood spewed immediately from his broken face. Hux was mewling like an animal.

  
  


Worth it.

  
  


He thought as the troopers pummeled him back to the floor.

  
  


Hux was ready to strike but he didn’t get the chance to as the proximity alarms blared and the first few strikes reverberated through the command centre.

  
  


Fucking hells the balls on this stupid woman!

  
  


“See that Hux? That’s real love. And it’s worth everything.”

  
  
  



	39. Chapter 39

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here we go! We've finally come to the Battle! This is the first of two parts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a bit since my last update; I originally wrote the entire confrontation with the First Order as one chapter but it seemed too long so I split it in half.  
> As you can see, there are only a few chapters left until we're wrapped up. I cannot believe that I've been writing and posting this story for almost a year now. I think part of my reason for delaying posting these chapters is the inevitability of saying goodbye to these characters that I've come to love so much.

 

The cold darkness of space enveloped the Millennium Falcon as its crew navigated towards the Dreadnought.

 

_See us through this one last time old girl._

 

Chewie recited a silent prayer as they approached The Finalizer, careful to remain out of range of their cannons.

 

He’d gotten used to Rey being in the pilot’s seat but that didn’t mean he missed the man who occupied that chair any less. As foolish as this missioned seemed - and what they were doing was damn ridiculous - he had to try. Ben Solo was as much his as he was Han and Leia’s and his light shone inside Kylo Ren, somewhere.

 

His friends would’ve wanted their son safe and he had to do right by them.

 

Even if it would cost him his own life.

 

Chewie admired Rey’s determined fierceness as she piloted the ship and led their impossible mission. He inventoried the rest of their ragtag crew with equal approbation -  Poe and Finn fidgeted with anxiety in the passenger seats while Sunny and Wyatt Ren stood in the doorway, stoic under their masks but vibrating with restless energy . All in, the Falcon  was crowded and nervous.

 

Rey turned to face Poe after making contact with the First Order “you’ve got the floor General Dameron.”

 

“Hugsy! You’ve advanced quickly!” Poe taunted and even through the projected imagine, the red head’s irritation was evident.

 

“Do you really think me foolish enough to fall for the same rouse for a second time?” He answered annoyed.

 

“Yes. I think very little of a man who would willingly bring Kylo Ren aboard his ship and think he’ll live to see another day.” The Knights smiled at Poe’s comment. Chewie approved internally.

 

“You and those fanatics out too much faith in Lord Ren. Without the use of the Force he’s just another soldier. One with mediocre skill at best.”

 

“Even so, he’s much better than you could ever hope to be.” Poe continued to egg him on.

 

Hux’s face was grimacing into a sinister smile “Maybe. Maybe not. I can’t say for certain. But what I can tell you and that scavenger rat sitting next to you is that my army is much, much bigger than your sad little rabble. Would I have access to my new weaponry, I would blow this entire planet right out of the galaxy. But since I don’t, I’ll just have to go down there myself and crush each and everyone of you personally. Rest assured, scum, that I _will_ use it. That should be your final thought before you die - that you’ve failed.”

 

Rey was seething, her chest rapidly rising and falling with rage as she bared her teeth to the holoprojector.

 

“Hux we have a one time offer for you; give us Kylo Ren unharmed, call back your troopers and disband the First Order immediately. Do that and your life will be spared and you can live the rest of your days in exile in the outer rim. Continue your attack and I will personally execute you.”

 

Hux barked a vicious laugh “I will leave you for last scavenger. You’ll watch me kill everyone you love, starting with your wretched traitor lover and finishing with your criminal brother.”

 

She gasped and held her breath at his vitriolic words. “Oh, you didn’t think I’d find out? You _are_ a foolish child.”

 

“You’ve been warned Hux!” Rey spat through her clenched teeth.

 

The New Supreme Leader smirked and raised his hands as a provocation before he shut down the communication.

 

Chewie has never been afraid of the First Order, the Empire or the dark side. He’d trusted in himself, he trusted in his friends and that’s kept him safe for more years than he cared to admit.

 

_One way or another, this is going to be my last fight._

 

“Ready?” his new captain asked with a firm tone of voice with only a hint of nervous energy under her conviction.

 

***

 

“Take us down Poe, we need to lure them away from the base.” Rey barked her orders.

 

“You think that will work?” The pilot asked with skepticism.

 

“It will if Hux sees a prize too good to resist.”

 

“I don’t love that you’re dangling yourself in front of him like this Rey.” Finn grumbled, although he knew that was futile in changing her decision.

 

Poe took over alongside Chewie and they hovered the Falcon, close to the frozen surface of the planet but without landing.

 

The General had  taken over for Rey as co-pilot, giving her an earful of all the reasons why her plan was incredibly stupid and dangerous. Seeing as there was no way he would stop her, Poe sighed and pulled her in a tight hug.

 

“May the Force be with you Jedi.” Poe shouted as she left the cabin.

 

_May the Force be with all of us._

 

She was greeted by Wyatt and Sunny, sullen and serious, very much the fearsome Knights of Ren, donning their black leather uniforms under their long wool tunics. Hers matched them in all ways but one - the cowl Kylo had given her, draped on her tensed shoulders.

 

Her fingers caressed the fabric, feeling the lingering ghost of his touch. She shook the welling tears away, this was not the time for self pity. She still held onto the hope that Kylo was alive, that Hux was as foolish as they’d credited him.

 

Wyatt closed the distance between them, possibly to offer some words of comfort and confidence when the Falcon’s proximity alarm blared.

 

“Incoming ground troops from the west. Three AT-ATs. Maybe two dozen trooper battalions.”

 

“They came to fight.” Wyatt spoke, anticipation reverberating through him and into the Force surrounding them.

 

“Hux is with them. He intends to follow through on those promises he made and he brought an audience.” Sunny pointed to the ships breaking atmo - Naboo carriers, First Order transports and the Dreadnaught.

 

Rey made her peace with the possibility of dying - a possibility that seemed more likely with every passing moment - but she had to try. She couldn’t give up without knowing she’d given everything.

 

“Let’s give them a show then.” She pulled down her mask and wrapped herself in the cowl, clutching her saber tight to her hip.

 

“Rey are you seeing this?” Finn’s voice rang out over the comm-link. “Hux is on the ground. He has Kylo Ren in chains. And...fucking traitor!!!!”

 

The Knights rushed into the cockpit, processing what they were seeing. About a hundreds yards away, in front of the sharp cliffs covered in fresh snow, Hux had stepped out of his transport. Donning his signature smirk, he paced behind Kylo, who was being towed by two troopers. Their blasters were pointed at his head. Any sudden movement and he would be struck dead, Rey had no doubts about that.

 

“Is that…?” Sunny squinted and pursed his lips with displeasure.

 

“Lando fucking Calrissian! I knew he couldn’t be trusted and still I fell for it!” Poe snarled and Chewie let out a vicious growl in the captain’s seat.

 

Finn regarded them with anticipation “What do we do now?”

 

“Same plan. Kylo wants Hux dead. It’s the only way we can begin to restore the balance.”

 

Sunny’s words were cold, but true. Kylo would never allow them to trade his life at the expense of their mission - restoring balance in the Force meant the First Order had to fall.

 

“Just for the record, I really hate this.”

 

“Me too Wyatt, but this is the best we’ve got.” Rey spoke, her words distorted by the modulator.

 

The Rebels were on the move, approaching the meeting point cautiously, lead by C’marron, Alix, Attari and Vella Hesas.

 

“She’s a good find isn’t she?” Wyatt remarked out loud, giving Rey pause. _There’s something there, very interesting. Must explore when we’re not under an immediate death sentence._

 

“Hello Rebel scum.” Hux’s voice rang out into the frozen expanse. “As you can see, it’s all over but the crying. I won. I hold your disgrace of a leader, this shameless turn-cloak and Force zealot. I will kill him where he stands unless you meet my demands. Don’t get me wrong, I will still kill him after he is publicly tried and answers for all his crimes. But if you give yourselves up willingly, I will spare you your miserable lives.”

 

Rey could feel the rage boiling inside the Knights; it mirrored her own feelings and it spilled into the Force, making it dense and unstable. The way it had been when Kylo first arrived on Hoth.

 

“What the fuck!?” Sunny and Poe stood, their panic laden faces telling her enough to understand what they were seeing.

 

A small dark figure approached Hux and his crew; the long wavy mane of strawberry blonde hair flowing behind her was unmistakable.

 

“Auburn! What the fuck is she doing?” Sunny lost his composure and ran back into the main hold, ready to fight.

 

“Ah! One of you has some sense. Lady Ren, so good of you to join me.” Hux’s voice rang out once more as two other troopers took Auburn Ren into custody, cuffing her and standing her next to Kylo.

 

Although Rey’s experience with Hux had been limited, she understood him. He was ambitions, relentless and overconfident.

 

The supreme leader seemed to be entirely pleased with himself as he admired the pretty Knight, stroking her alabaster cheek with his knuckles and gathering up the nerve to bend at the waist to kiss her, to the utter dismay of her companions.

 

“Clever girl.” Rey smiled, understating.

 

Several things happened immediately and simultaneously causing utter chaos.  Auburn lowered her head back just slightly and plunged it directly into Hux’s face, his nose visibly broken as blood gushed everywhere, staining the pristine white canvas around him.

 

One of the troopers holding Kylo re-directed his blaster toward the other, singing him and the ones holding Auburn with quick blasts.

 

“Pete the fucking trooper!” Finn whooped and punched the air with glee.

 

The battalions of troopers waiting on the ground took off running towards them as Hux scrambled to get up, wailing like an injured bantha.

 

Auburn, Pete and Kylo, who was still In handcuffs, broke in a run towards the base, where the rebels were ready for battle.

 

Rey’s mind cleared, her focus on one thing and one thing only - Kylo.

 

“Let’s do it Poe! Chewie, get us closer to them and then go. Our best chance is for you to get into the Finalizer while Hux and his cronies are down here, distracted.” Rey shouted her orders and although she sensed and heard their concerns, they didn’t voice any of them out loud.

 

The Falcon roared as it plunged forward. Finn opened the door and Rey, Wyatt and Sunny jumped out, landing in front of  Kylo and Auburn, lit sabers  in hand and fighting stances engaged.

 

Kylo released his restraints but he was weaponless, but not for long. Rey split her saber-staff and handed half to him as the troopers approached, now well within firing range.

 

To an outside observer, it appeared the troopers were missing. They weren’t.

 

They were thwarted. By the other force users, led by Vella Hesas. Their training, brief as it was, had paid off. They were able to concentrate on forming a force shield around the Knights who were regrouping as the others joined the fray.

 

Kylo and Rey lead the vanguard, flanked by Wyatt and Attari Ren. C’marron and Alix followed on each side, Auburn and Sunny in the tails. They formed an attack “V” and waited.

 

Hux retreated to his transport like the coward he was, as Rey expected. But he hadn’t yet taken off to hide in his dreadnaught. Several more trooper transports landed, saturating Hoth’s surface as far as the eye could see, effectively surrounding them.

 

The Force shield held until it suddenly didn’t. They all felt the disturbance and then...nothing.

 

_Hux!_

 

“They engaged their weapon. It’s a mass scale airborne inhibitor.” Kylo spoke, his words landing heavy on all their hearts.

 

_This is the end then._

 

Rey felt Kylo’s fingers interlock with hers, and for a second time stood still. They didn’t need the Force to understand.

 

“I love you Rey.” He spoke as they watched the First Order’s forces move in, now well within firing range.

 

“I know.” She answered and closed her eyes, reciting the prayer in her mind. _All is as the Force wills it. I will not fear. I am one with the Force. The Force is with me._

 

And then, with a roaring rumble, the mountain fell. Snow, ice and rock tumbled, burying the white army, equalizing the playing field once more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you! for sticking with the story and having patience!  
> And HEA is guaranteed so don't worry too much! 
> 
> I've been going back to early chapters and editing. I was not overly happy with my early writing so I felt the need to go back and clean it up. None of the story changed, just better (I hope) quality writing. 
> 
> Love you guys!!!


	40. Chapter 40

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Part two of the battle!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe it's been over a year now since I started posting this story! Thank you so much for sticking around and reading it to this point! I hope this chapter resolves everything in a way you're happy with :)

The heavy snow blanketed Hoth, temporarily silencing the battle site. 

 

Although cut-off from the Force, Kylo was aware of all the Knights of Ren close by, each of them feverishly working to dig themselves out of their icy trap before they suffocated under its weight. 

 

He was also very much aware that Rey was not with them. 

 

During the avalanche Hux and Lando had managed to escape and were he a gambling man - like a true Solo - he would’ve bet good money they had her. 

 

“Where’s Rey?” Wyatt Ren asked as his eyes frantically searched the vast icy expanse. He was the second of the Knights to free himself from the snow. His saber was lit and he was ready to continue the fight, as if the avalanche that buried them and killed a vast number of troopers had been just a minor interruption. 

 

Attari Ren motioned to the sky, where the First Order transports were making their way back up to the Finalizer.

 

“I swear, when I get my hands on that ginger cunt, there will be nothing to stop me from throttling his little pencil neck!” Wyatt was practically foaming at the mouth. Even without the aid of the Force, Kylo could feel his friend’s rage reverberating through his body.

 

“You won’t have to wait long, let’s get moving!” Sunny directed their attention towards their own idling transport, waiting for them to board, piloted by Vella Hesas. Like her pirate grandmother, Vella was fierce, brave and blessed with a sharp tongue that matched her sharp wit.

 

“What took you guys so long?” she smirked as C’mmaron, the last of the Knights, climbed into the transport and laid on the floor next to her girlfriend, catching her breath. 

 

Wyatt took his seat next to Vella, in the co-pilot chair. Calm was not an appropriate word to describe the man’s mood, but somehow he seemed more centered than the unhinged blood-thirsty mess he’d been just moments before. It had to be her influence. 

 

_ So, the perennial bachelor has found his match! If we make it through this, Rey is going to finally get her turn to be a pain in the ass. The Master of cockblockery will get his, if we get out of this mess.  _

 

“Where’s Poe? And the Falcon?” Auburn asked softly, concern written on her face. 

 

“They’re up there already, they took off before the mountain fell.” Vella answered. “To what end though, I can only fathom a guess. I assume they had some sort of dumbass quasi-brave plan to get into the Finalizer and get your girl back.” 

 

_ My girl. I’m coming for you sweetheart, hang in there. _

 

“What time is it?”  he asked to no one in particular. Idle chatter usually helped tense situations. 

 

“Just after sixteen hundred hours standard time - the sun will be setting shortly.” Sunny answered as he pulled in a drag of his lit cigarette.

 

“Are you fucking smoking?” Kylo asked rhetorically.

 

“Yup. I’m pretty sure we’re about to die in the next few minutes so I figured why not!?”

 

“I find your lack of faith disturbing” he spoke Darth Vader’s words and smirked as the rest of the Knights chuckled softly. “Trust in the Force.”

 

“I trust the Force Kylo, but the Force can’t hear us now. We’re on our own, floating aimlessly in the abyss. Alone and powerless.” Alix, who had been uncharacteristically quiet, spoke up. 

 

“The effects of the inhibitor will wear off instantly if we do our jobs -  as soon as we get on board the Finalizer, we need to locate the emitter and disable it. Pete will take you, Sunny and Attari to it. Attari knows how to dismantle it, or at the very least can take an educated guess. The rest of us will find Hux and Rey. We’ll isolate him in the hangar, with Lando and Myrexyija. Hux is not a fighter and neither are the others. Until then, trust me.”

 

The Knights bowed their heads in unison agreement. Kylo felt a twinge of remorse but he could not risk divulging all he knew. Not just yet. 

 

_ They’ll forgive me. _

 

***

 

The First Order’s troopers were frenzied, Tie Fighters loading and taking off in a flurry of activity, raging to get to the dog fight. So hurried in fact, that they didn’t notice the transport that landed inconspicuously in the docking bay. 

 

“That was easy.” Wyatt remarked as they readied themselves to disembark.

 

“Too easy.” Auburn chimed in with suspicion. 

 

“Hux is expecting us.” Kylo stated  as a matter of fact. “He knows I wouldn’t leave Rey in his hands long and that’s why he brought her back here. He also thinks that without the use of the Force, we are nothing. He’s underestimating us and we need to take advantage of that.”

 

“Shit! We’ve got company!” Wyatt growled baring his teeth as several battalions filed into the hangar.

 

Hux’s shrill voice rang through the destroyer’s speakers as his pale face appeared on the holo-projector. He’d cleaned the blood from his face but his nose was decidedly pointing in a different direction. 

 

_ It’s an improvement. _

 

His parlour was even more ghastly through the projection, his thin repulsive fingers secured around Rey’s throat sending shivers down Kylo’s spine. Her hands seemed to be tied and she was gagged, but still managed to kick the ginger below his knees, causing him to gasp and tear up as he bent forward.

 

_ He’s hurt.  _

 

“Once again, welcome back Ren. This time you  _ will _ pay very close attention to my instructions or else the Jedi bitch gets to experience the cold embrace of space while you and her brother watch. You see Ren, I don’t need the Force to help me out of tough situations - all I need are my own skills and knowledge. Skills that have been honed and perfected over years of grueling military training. Hard work is a concept entirely lost on you and your zealots. ”

 

Kylo chewed the inside of his cheek, thinking over his answer. He didn’t want to antagonize him when he had Rey so close, but his tongue itched to unleash a tirade “What the fuck do you want Hux?” he tried to steady his voice but his blood boiled.

 

He leaned in to Attari and gave him quick instructions. “Go. Now!” 

 

Hux continued to talk - he loved nothing more than the sound of his own voice. “What do I want?  I told you already. You dead, the Jedi dead and the resistance crushed. You can run cowards  but I’ll find you. Once I’ve dealt with your master it’ll be your turn!” He cackled as he caught sight of the Knights departing, leaving Kylo on his own to face the troopers that surrounded him. 

 

Once again, he lifted his hands in surrender and allowed the storm troopers to guide him to the command bridge.

 

A vitriol laced smile met him when the doors wooshed open and Hux was able to look at him face to face. He still had Rey in his grasp. Kylo breathed a sigh of relief as he inventoried her little body - she looked furious, a little bit frightened but if she was hurt it was not serious. 

 

Hux didn’t get too much time to gloat though  as the proximity alarms blared inside the Finalizer. 

 

“Supreme Leader! It’s the Resistance! There’s dozens of fighter X-wings and old A-wings.” the woman on the other end of the comm-link sounded shaken.

 

“Fools! Prime the ion cannons and fire at will. Wherever this rabble came from, whatever spark revived their fire is going to be snuffed out today. I’m going to make them regret their decision to rally and come out of hiding for Kylo Ren.” Hux spoke with conviction, although the slight tremble in his voice told another tale.

 

_ No. Not for Kylo Ren. _

 

The rebel fighters fired on the Finalizer as Tie fighters met them and chased them off. It was a valiant effort but they were no match for the warship’s shields and fire power. The bridge floor shook from the blows, but its integrity had not been compromised. It suited Kylo just fine, seeing as he was in no rush to float into the depths of space.

 

He looked at a crono on the command bridge - it had been close to two standard hours since they left Hoth and maybe half an hour since the rebels began their attack.

 

_ We’re running out of time. _

 

As Kylo’s chest began to constrict and the tentacles of fear wrapped around his heart and pulled him towards the abyss, another alarm blared. “It's the Supremacy!” one of the underlings spoke in a panic-stricken voice. 

 

_ Finally. _

 

General Peavy’s face appeared on the holo-projector, his expression grave as he spoke, with his hands folded behind his back. 

 

“General Hux. You are hereby relieved of your Supreme Leader duties and ordered to surrender. You will be taken into custody and charged in an intergalactic assembly for your war crimes. Do not resist - you are surrounded on all sides.” 

 

Kylo watched as Hux’s face displayed an array of emotions - from smug entitlement to utter shock - and he manhandled Rey, shoving her towards Lando and the Queen of Naboo. 

 

“Take her while I deal with these traitors. Any sudden movements from you Ren or any of your knights will result in Rey’s pretty little head getting sliced right off her shoulders before you can even blink.”  He then passed Rey’s light saber to Lando, who held her close.

 

Rey’s eyes shined in the stark lights of the bridge as she watched Kylo. Even without the Force thrumming between them they seemed to be in tune, the corners of her eyes crinkling with an understanding smile. They’ve been here before. They’ve fought against greater odds and fiercer adversaries and won. 

 

“You have to trust me sweetheart.” He spoke out loud, even though he didn’t have to. 

 

“How romantic.” The Queen quipped dryly. “You’ve gotten soft. And stupid. You must be in love. Soon enough you’ll be together, forever in your precious Force.” She tugged Rey roughly and pushed her to her knees as the alarms continue to blare and hordes of troopers filed in.

 

Kylo stood not even ten feet from her, unarmed and heavily guarded. He closed his eyes and took deep, cleansing breaths attempting to center himself. Rey seemed to follow his example, the tension in her body visibly dissipation as her shoulders squared and she held her head high.

 

“Seal the doors!” Hux barked out another order, too focused on the star destroyer and dreadnaughts  closing in quickly and surrounding him, to notice the lack of movement in the ranks of the troopers. 

 

“I told you your arrogance would be the end of you Hux. You should’ve paid attention.” Kylo spoke calmly without opening his eyes.

 

“Fuck you Ren! You think you’re safe? None of us is leaving this bridge you realize? You and your scavenger bitch will be dead long before Peavy and his traitors get here.” The ginger spat through his teeth, all pretense gone out of his voice. 

 

Kylo lifted his gaze and carefully scrutinized the red head - his face was flushed with fear, he was bleeding from the injuries he’d sustained in the avalanche on Hoth and sweating so profusely that his hair was stuck to his forehead in clumps. 

 

_ He’s afraid. As he should be. _

 

“Oh, I don’t think so Armie.” Kylo smirked and all the troopers aimed their blasters in Hux’s direction. Confusion and fury quickly crossed his expression. 

 

“Hey there Hugs!” Poe chuckled as he removed his helm, followed by Finn. “I hate to say it but I’m getting used to these things!” He spoke in a jovial tone of voice as he chucked the helmet aside and pointed two blasters at Hux’s face, quickly closing the distance between them. 

 

“I saw you hitting on my lady - although I suppose she’s the one who did all the hitting,  wasn’t she?” He chuckled as he pushed a blaster into Hux’s broken nose, causing him to wince and his eyes to water. 

 

“Traitors!” Hux shouted pitifully as he ran from the troopers. “Calrissian! Order your men to fire! Kill all these treasonous dogs!” 

 

“You know, I just don’t see that happening.” Lando spoke as he helped Rey to a standing position.

 

Hux seemed to be processing what was happening, a flash of understanding crossing his face.

 

_ Finally putting the pieces together fuck-face huh? _

 

“Lando? What are you doing? You have to order the men to attack or they’ll kill us all!” Myrexija panicked at his side.

 

“No dear, I don’t think so.”

 

The queen lost all semblance of grace and grabbed the blaster from his side holster, pointing it at Rey, her hands shaking as she teared up.

 

“Don’t you love me?” She sounded sad, small and defeated as she shifted her aim from Rey to Lando and back. Kylo almost felt bad for her. Almost. She’d been his childhood friend and she betrayed him. Sold him out to Hux and now pointed a blaster at the woman he loved. 

 

Lando paced towards the hysterical monarch, effectively placing himself between the loaded blaster and Rey. He was a good talker, but an even better conman if half the stories Han Solo had told were true.

 

Kylo watched their interaction carefully, as he slowly circled them like a predator, coming to stand behind Rey. 

 

“I never lied to you Myrexija - everything I’ve done, I’ve done it for love. Because of love.”  Lando glanced at Rey’s saber still clutched in his hand, then back to his new wife. “I never said it was  _ you  _ who I loved my Queen.” 

 

The Queen’s eyes bulged out of her her head with incredulity. She seemed to be understanding Lando’s words but they weren’t making sense.

 

Not until it was too late - her eyes glazed over and a slow stream of tears rolled down her cheeks as one end of the saber lit and penetrated through her core, leaving her speechless.

 

General Carlisian extinguished the weapon as his wife’s lifeless body dropped to the floor.

 

Rey was finally free of her restraints and safely in Kylo’s embrace. He peppered her with kisses on every surface he could find while his fingers scanned her body for injuries as relief coursed through him. 

 

“The Force! I can feel it again Kylo!” Rey rejoiced in his arms. 

 

“I loved Han and he loved you. More than anything. Even more than he loved your mother. We may not be bound by blood but he was the brother I chose. I always loved you as my own you know? Than never goes away, no matter what. I hope you never doubted that.” 

 

“I didn’t.”

 

Lando teared as he moved to the bridge window, watching on as  the Millenium Falcon hovered among the First Order and Rebel fighter ships. 

 

Both sides had seemingly obliged by the ceasefire order Peavy had ordered giving way to a sudden and welcome peace.

 

Lando placed his hand on the window and sighed as he spoke softly “The only woman I ever loved is the brain of that ship you know? If i’m going to die, I want her beside me.” He slumped to the floor, revealing the deep crimson stain seeping rapidly through his overcoat. 

 

“You’ll die one day uncle, but today is not your day.” Kylo spoke as he released Rey from her restraints and kissed her again, hurrying to Lando’s side. 

 

They both concentrated on the light, feeling the Force hum with content around them once more and asked for its for help.

 

***

 

Kylo Ren was not, in fact, a gambling man. 

 

As Rey focused on the Force, healing and repairing Lando’s muscles and tissue slowly, Kylo reflected on the past day’s events. 

 

Chewie and Poe piloted the Falcon, away from Hoth and the First Order, to the only destination where Rey and the Wookiee knew their safety would be assured.

 

The night before the First Order attacked, after the rebels and the knights went to sleep aided by the wine and Corellian whiskey they all partook in, Kylo plotted. With the help of the three last members of his family - Maz, Chewie and Lando - he devised their plan of attack. 

 

Kylo knew they did not have the numbers and a direct attack would’ve been over before it even begun. But Hux was arrogant and he assumed Kylo Ren was very much the wild man he had been on Crait. 

 

Hux knew of Lando’s strained relationship with Kylo and he certainly was not above exploring Myrexija’s insecurities. Although the ginger general took the credit for establishing the Naboo-Bespin alliance through this marriage, the union has been plotted long before. Over a few glasses of whiskey.

 

“It was your idea wasn’t it?” Rey asked she stepped towards him, allowing Wyatt and Sunny Ren to hover over Lando’s sleeping form. Sunny’s healing skills were by far the most advanced and Wyatt’s had improved tremendously over the last few weeks. Kylo nodded affirming what she’d already guessed. 

 

“ And you knew Peavy was coming didn’t you? That’s why you took Pete with you! Lando didn’t drug you, you needed to get onto the Finalizer. Why?” Wyatt asked, making no effort to hide that he’d been shamelessly eavesdropping. 

 

“I mostly needed Hux to feel secure. But I wanted to come on board and talk to the troopers. They needed to see me and hear the words from my lips directly. I promised them the end of the supreme leader function and the end of the reconditioning program. The death of the First Order as they knew it.”

 

“And in case that didn’t work, you had the rebels. How did you convince them to fight for you?” Sunny, like the others brimmed with curiosity.

 

“They didn’t.” He deadpanned as he looked upon the cliffs of Ach-To they were quickly descending to.

 

“Maz.” 

 

“Yup. She used all her contacts and gathered them all for one last fight. There’s a good chance she left out whom their allies were. R2D2 and Threepio helped locate them all and Vella Hesas, who has been rallying rebels all over the outer rim, including on Lothal, rallied them to Hoth.”

 

“Is that’s why you sent us there? To Lothal?” C’marron asked. 

 

“Not intentionally but I had hoped that you’d run into them. I hoped you’d make an impression and if that didn’t work, the two of you could’ve easily taken them out. Everything that went down to bring you face to face with Wexley and Pava and their crew was the Force at work, I suspect.”

 

“Ok ok ok but when exactly did you come up with this crazy ass plan?! And why did you tell no one but Maz and Lando?” Alix was getting her questions out now as well. Everyone crammed in the Falcon seemed to be listening now.

 

“Chewie was in on it. Attari too, although he didn’t know about Lando’s fake kidnapping. .” The Wookie corroborated Kylo’s statement with a growl. “He was supposed to use the Falcon as the distraction and take us out of the there if Peavy was delayed for any reason. But of course, Poe and FN - umm Finn - had to go rogue and devise a typical insanely risky plan.”

 

Rey arched a perfectly manicured brow and questioned “So you didn’t know they were in the troopers’ ranks?” 

 

“No. I knew they were with us since none of them used their blasters as prods against me, but I assumed they were Pete’s men. Without the Force all I could do was guess. I just needed to do whatever it took to buy time for Peavy to get there. I’m sorry, I had to keep this all secret - Hux is exceptionally skilled at reading reactions and I needed yours to be genuine. I didn’t expect to see these two standing there. And I didn’t expect Peavy to have the Supremacy ready. ”

 

“I bet that wiped Hux’s shit eating grub right off his face!” Sunny smiled as the pieces of the puzzle finally came together. “That’s why you kept asking about the time. I thought you were just trying to distract us with small talk.”

 

“That was part of it. I didn’t want this one to spontaneously combust with rage.” Kylo pointed to Wyatt, who’d taken a seat next to Rey and was in the middle of examining her for injuries for the third time since they left the Finalizer.

 

“Am I crazy or did Poe call Auburn  _ his lady?  _ In the middle of the attack?” Rey laughed as she cleverly redirected the spotlight.

 

The red headed knight blushed and suddenly became very interested in inspecting her fingernails and dodging the curious looks.

 

_ Really, at this point it’s just a confirmation. Rebel scum is an acquired taste but once you have a bite... _

 

“So just to confirm - our connection to the Force is firmly re-established.” Attari advised with a chuckle.

 

“Right. If you could not discuss any actual or implied  _ tasting  _ or  _ biting  _ or things of that nature as it pertains to my sister, that would be great.” 

 

A loud ruckus of laugher broke out in cabin, even Poe and Chewie joined in as the tensions of the past few hours, days and weeks melted away as they landed on Ach-To, next to the other transports.

 

Rey sat next to him as everyone eagerly filed out of the freighter and placed her small hands in his.

 

“Leia was right you know. We have everything we need, right here.” 

 

Kylo cupped her face in his hands, brushing a few unruly wisps of hair out of her eyes and tucking them gently behind her ears. “I love you Rey. And don’t you dare say I know!” 

 

He didn’t allow her time to reply before he angled her face to his and pressed his mouth to hers, the kiss so searing it left him breathless.

 

“Let’s not got out yet.” Rey whispered against his lips and used the Force to seal them inside the Millennium Falcon.

 

Who was he to argue?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that is that! There's one chapter left - more of an epilogue checking in on everyone as things settle down in the newly freed Galaxy.   
> thank you! again, if you're still reading this, my gratitude and love is yours!


End file.
